The European Union and 26 Western countries have condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the executions of protesters in Iran, stating that the country’s citizens must be allowed to assemble and express their views without risking their lives.
“The use of the death penalty to suppress dissent, intimidate communities and punish those exercising their human rights can never be justified,” reads a joint statement by the EU and countries ranging from Canada to Romania. — “The people of Iran must be able to freely exercise their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly without fear.”
The signatories called on Iran “to immediately halt the use of the death penalty and release all those who have been arbitrarily detained”, as well as “to listen to the voice of its people, who are calling for change, and to take concrete measures to ensure respect for human rights”.
The Iranian authorities have frequently used the death penalty as part of a crackdown on political dissidents during and after the mass protests in January.
Since the start of the war with the United States and Israel on 28 February, there has been a surge in executions of people whom human rights groups consider to be political prisoners, ranging from protesters to alleged members of banned groups and individuals convicted of espionage.
Some human rights groups claim that more than 50 people have been executed since the start of the war on charges relating to national security and political activity, although others put the figure much higher. According to data verified by an Iranian human rights group, 463 people have been executed in Iran since the start of this year, many of whom were sentenced to death in connection with the January protests, during which thousands of people were killed by security forces and tens of thousands were detained.
In addition to the EU, the statement was issued by Albania, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The United States was not included in the list.