EU: Pace of Executions in Iran is Appalling

Iranian security personnel preparing ropes for the gallows. (IRNA Agency)
Iranian security personnel preparing ropes for the gallows. (IRNA Agency)
TT
20

EU: Pace of Executions in Iran is Appalling

Iranian security personnel preparing ropes for the gallows. (IRNA Agency)
Iranian security personnel preparing ropes for the gallows. (IRNA Agency)

The European Union (EU) on Friday described the current pace of executions in Iran as “appalling”, reiterating its firm and principled opposition to the use of capital punishment at all times and in all circumstances.
“There are credible reports that a minor, Hamidreza Azari, and a protester, Milad Zohrevand, were executed in Iran on November 24 and 23 respectively,” the Arab World Press quoted the EU statement.
“The current pace of executions in Iran, at least 600 since January, is appalling,” added the statement.
“The European Union reiterates its firm and principled opposition to the use of capital punishment at all times and in all circumstances. The death penalty is a cruel and inhumane punishment, which fails to act as a deterrent to crime and represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity.”
Iranian authorities executed a Kurdish man jailed for almost 14 years in a case linked to a Muslim cleric's killing in 2008, rights groups said, decrying unjust proceedings, according to Iran International.
Ayoub Karimi, 33, was arrested in 2019 on the capital charge of "corruption on earth" in a case involving six other Kurdish men who also received the death penalty.
Amnesty International had issued warnings in recent days, highlighting the imminent danger of Karimi's execution and urging authorities to cancel the sentence.
Karimi was hanged along with six other men, who had received sentences in unrelated cases, in Ghezel Hesar prison in the Tehran suburb of Karaj, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) group said.
Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “The execution of Ayoub Karimi, based on coerced confessions and without a fair trial, like the execution of other political prisoners, is a crime.”
The execution was confirmed by the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency and France-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network.
Amnesty International said in a statement at the time that the trial was "grossly unfair," pointing to forced confessions under torture.
The remaining five defendants are still incarcerated and face the imminent threat of execution, according to human rights watchdogs.
The rate of executions in Iran has been rising sharply, particularly in the wake of widespread protests that swept across the country last year following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody for an alleged head-scarf violation.
This month it has executed Milad Zohrevand, a man in his 20s in a case related to the protests, as well as 17-year-old youth Hamidreza Azari on murder charges as well as dozens of others.



Iran Says US Sanctions ‘Will Not Change’ Policy after Trump Warnings

An Iranian man rides a bicycle next to an anti-US mural near the former US embassy in Tehran, Iran, 01 May 2025. (EPA)
An Iranian man rides a bicycle next to an anti-US mural near the former US embassy in Tehran, Iran, 01 May 2025. (EPA)
TT
20

Iran Says US Sanctions ‘Will Not Change’ Policy after Trump Warnings

An Iranian man rides a bicycle next to an anti-US mural near the former US embassy in Tehran, Iran, 01 May 2025. (EPA)
An Iranian man rides a bicycle next to an anti-US mural near the former US embassy in Tehran, Iran, 01 May 2025. (EPA)

Iran said Friday that continued US sanctions on its trade partners will not alter its policy, after President Donald Trump threatened to penalize countries or individuals dealing in Iranian oil.

"The continuation of these illegal behaviors will not change Iran's logical, legitimate and international law-based positions," a foreign ministry statement said, condemning what it called "pressure on Iran's trade and economic partners".

It added that such sanctions have created "deep suspicion and mistrust about the seriousness of America on the path of diplomacy".

On Thursday, Trump vowed to enforce sanctions and called for a global boycott of "any amount" of Iranian oil or petrochemicals.

"All purchases of Iranian Oil, or Petrochemical products, must stop, NOW!" Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

"Any Country or person who buys ANY AMOUNT of OIL or PETROCHEMICALS from Iran will be subject to, immediately, Secondary Sanctions," he added.

His remarks came after Iran confirmed that the next round of nuclear talks with the United States, which had been expected to be held on Saturday, has been postponed, with mediator Oman citing "logistical reasons".

Oman said the date for a new round "will be announced when mutually agreed".

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who headed the Iranian delegation in the three rounds of talks held so far, said Iran was ready for a "just and balanced deal".

"There is no change in our determination to secure a negotiated solution," Araghchi said on X, adding that any deal should guarantee "an end to sanctions."

The talks mark the highest-level contact on Iran's nuclear program since Trump abandoned a landmark accord between Tehran and major powers in 2018.

The US president had written to Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei in March urging negotiations but warning of potential military action if they failed.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has revived the "maximum pressure" policy of sanctions against Iran, with the latest announced on Wednesday and targeting seven companies accused of transporting Iranian-origin petroleum products.

Tensions over Iran's nuclear program soared after Washington withdrew from the 2015 deal with major powers which offered Tehran sanctions relief in return for restrictions on its nuclear activities.

Iran adhered to the agreement for a year afterwards before beginning to roll back its compliance.

Western governments have since accused Tehran of seeking a nuclear weapons capability, an ambition it has consistently denied, insisting that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.