Latest Status of Case of Three November Protesters Sentenced to Death; Case Referred Back to Supreme Court
According to statements from the lawyers of three November 2019 protesters sentenced to death, following acceptance of their request for retrial, the final defense brief for the cases of Amirhossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi has been submitted to the country’s Supreme Court in hopes of overturning their death sentences, so this institution can decide their fate.
Babak Paknia, lawyer for Amirhossein Moradi, one of the November protesters, stated on his Twitter page regarding the latest status of these three young men’s cases that on Monday, September 24, he submitted their final defense brief to the office of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Previously, the death sentences of Amirhossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi—three young November 2019 protesters—were upheld by the Supreme Court, which provoked intense reactions on social media, with people making #DontExecute a global trending hashtag. Even the President of the United States reacted on Twitter to the issuance of death sentences for these three young protesters in Iran, saying: “Three people in Iran have been sentenced to death for participating in protests. Their execution could happen at any moment. Executing these three would send a tragic message to the world and should not be done. #DontExecute”
At that time, one of the defendants’ lawyers stated that only after the death sentence was upheld were the lawyers for these protesters allowed to review the case file. With mounting protests, the judiciary agreed that the case of these three protesters would be reviewed again.
It was last November when people took to the streets in various Iranian cities protesting the sudden rise in gasoline prices. According to Reuters, following Khamenei’s order, approximately 1,500 protesters were killed. The Iranian government did not punish the suppression forces and instead arrested and convicted the protesters.
On Wednesday, September 19, twenty-two human rights organizations, through a joint letter signed by world leaders, called for addressing the “ongoing crisis of immunity of Iranian officials from consequences of serious human rights violations” during the November 2019 protests and thereafter at the forty-fifth session of the UN Human Rights Council.
In this statement signed by Iranian and international human rights organizations, it stated: “We reiterate our request to the UN Human Rights Council to establish UN-led investigations to examine widespread and systematic crimes and serious human rights violations by Iranian authorities during the November 2019 protests and the period thereafter.”
The United States has repeatedly criticized the suppression of protesters in Iran and the issuance of severe sentences for protesters. Mike Pompeo, U.S. Secretary of State, in his initial response to the widespread November 2019 protests in Iranian cities, wrote to the Iranian people: “The United States stands with you.” In his Twitter message, he stated: “I have a message for the people: The United States hears your voice. The United States supports you. The United States stands with you.”
America says the Islamic Republic spends its national wealth on supporting terrorist groups and destabilizing the Middle East instead of its people. The United States has also repeatedly condemned endemic financial corruption and the plundering of Iran’s God-given resources by regime-affiliated individuals, deeming them among the main factors in Iran’s economic and financial problems.
Source: Voice of America
