U.N. Says Executions in Iran Have Increased by 30%

(RepublicanNews.org) – One day after the Secretary-General of the United Nations referenced the “alarming” increase in the number of executions the nation of Iran is carrying out, the Persians found themselves being given a seat on a U.N.-based social forum for human rights. If the two apparently colliding facts left you scratching your head in confusion, it’s very likely that you’re not alone.

According to the report Antonio Guterres cited on November 1st, Iranian officials executed almost 420 individuals from January to July of 2023. The number represented what Guterres said was an increase of around 30% from the same month-over-month period the year before. A large portion of those executions are said to be related to political dissent.

Guterres told the General Assembly of seven instances in which men were picked up by Iranian authorities for their participation in protests that had unfolded after a 22-year-old woman reportedly died in police custody. According to his presentation, Mahsa Amini, the woman in question, was originally taken into custody for allegedly violating Iran’s compulsory headscarf laws for women.

Any girl or woman over the age of 9 years old in the Islamic nation is required by law to have their head partially covered by a headscarf, known as “hijab,” when in public. So-called “morality police” have been a fixture in the country since Iran’s 1978-79 revolution, after which certain elements of Sharia law were imposed. Those who fail to follow the edict risk imprisonment.

Each of the seven men referenced by Guterres were found to have not been given “fair” trials and “due process,” according to the Secretary-General. In addition to the septet having “timely legal representation” withheld from them, Guterres said they were reported to have been subjected to “coerced confessions” that were “obtained” through “torture.”

According to the U.N.’s top official, 57% of the near-420 executions were carried out for alleged drug offenses. He pointed out that the total was only 2% shy of a 100% increase over the same period from 2022.