Iranian Kurdish man Reza (Gholamreza) Rasaei is at imminent risk of execution in relation to the September-December 2022 nationwide protests. On December 16, 2023, his conviction and death sentence for “murder”, which were issued by a criminal court following a grossly unfair trial that admitted his torture-tainted forced “confessions” as “evidence”. On December 31, his sentence was sent for implementation, amid an ongoing alarming spike in executions across the country.
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- Write a letter in your own words or using the sample below as a guide to one or both government officials listed. You can also email, fax, call or Tweet them.
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contact information:
Head of judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei
c/o Embassy of Iran to the European Union, Avenue Franklin Roosevelt No. 15, 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium
Supreme Leader ‘Ali Khamenei
c/o Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations
622 3rd Ave, 34th floor, New York, NY 10017
Email: [email protected]
sample letter:
Dear Mr. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei,
Reza (Gholamreza) Rasaei, aged 34, from Iran’s oppressed Kurdish and Yaresan ethnic and religious minorities, respectively, is at imminent risk of execution in relation to the “Woman Life Freedom” nationwide protests which took place between September and December 2022. In a ruling dated December 16, 2023, his conviction for “murder” was upheld with the death sentence.
On October 7, 2023, Branch Two of Criminal Court 1 in Kermanshah province sentenced Reza Rasaei was sentenced to death in connection to the killing of an agent, identified as a member of the Revolutionary Guards by Iranian state media. Reza Rasaei has repeatedly denied involvement and stated, including during trial, that his forced “confessions” were made under torture and other ill treatment. Despite this, his forced “confessions” were admitted as “evidence”. Reza Rasaei’s right to a fair trial was flagrantly violated, including to access to a lawyer of his choosing.
I urge you to immediately halt any plans to carry out Reza (Gholamreza) Rasaei’s execution and quash his conviction and death sentence. If charged with a recognizable criminal offense, proceedings must meet international fair trial standards without recourse to the death penalty and exclude “confessions” obtained under torture. I urge you to immediately grant Reza Rasaei access to his family, independently chosen lawyer, and adequate medical care. I urge you to protect him from further torture and other ill-treatment and investigate his torture allegations.
Yours sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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