Daughter Of Iran's Ex-President Sentenced To Five Years In Prison

"The weaponization of criminal procedures to punish people for exercising their basic rights – such as those participating in or organizing demonstrations - amounts to state sanctioned killing," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said in a statement, saying the executions violated international human rights law.

Iran hanged two men on Saturday for allegedly killing a member of the security forces during nationwide protests and more have since been sentenced to death. The U.N. Human Rights office has received information that two further executions are imminent, the statement said.

The UN Human Rights Council voted November 24 to launch an investigation into Tehran's deadly repression against protesters.

Security forces have killed more than 500 people since mid-September when popular protests erupted after a 22-year-old woman died in ‘hijab police’ custody. The government has also arrested around 20,000 people according to estimates by human rights groups.

Iran's judiciary said Monday that a court has sentenced three others to death for “war against God”. The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights Organization announced in its latest report that at least 100 detainees face a death sentence or execution and most families are under pressure to stay quiet, and the real number is believed to be much higher.

Western government have reacted with outrage to the executions and the European Union is considering further sanctions on Islamic Republic’s entities and officials.

With reporting by Reuters

Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei said Monday that Iran must pay fines for the delay in discharging cargos, but he did not mention why the ships are waiting at the ports.

It seems that the delay in payments has disrupted flows of goods into the country. Most ships carrying food, animal feed and commodities receive full payment right before they dock at a port to unload their cargo. If payment is not arranged, the ships wait off the coast.

“Some of these ships are paid $25,000-65,000 per day as demurrage,” noted Ejei.

Some of these goods, which are not unloaded, added Ejei, “are damaged due to long waits by the ships, but these goods are necessary for the country,” he underlined.

He called on judicial officials to follow up the case through the Central Bank of Iran to ensure the cargos would be discharged soon.

Iran's currency has dropped by 30 percent since September and both the government and private importers face a financial crunch.

Food is exempt from the US sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, but the impact of the sanctions on Iran's financial system have created complex payment arrangements with international companies.

Reuters reported on December 21, that dozens of merchant ships with grains and sugar are stuck outside Iranian ports after weeks of delays in payment.

Most of the carrier ships are stuck outside the major Iranian ports of Bandar Imam Khomeini and Bandar Abbas, ship tracking data on Refinitiv showed.

The foundation in a statement on Monday said The Olof Palme Prize 2023 will be given to imprisoned Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi, Eren Keskin, a human rights lawyer in Turkey who was sentenced to six years in prison, and Marta Chumalo, a Ukrainian women's rights activist.

“Throughout their lives and through their actions, these three women, along with many of their colleagues, have inspired others and paved the way for courageous young women and men to continue fighting for the fundamental human rights,” said the statement.

“Narges Mohammadi is a journalist and human rights activist who has been struggling for women’s rights and freedom of speech in Iran. Her involvement has led to her repeated arrest, and she has served several prison terms,” wrote the Olof Palme Foundation.

The Olof Palme International Center is a Swedish non-governmental organization and Labor Movement's cooperative body for international issues. The center's areas of interest include democracy, human rights and peace.

The center is named after the late Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme. Olof Joachim Palme was a Swedish politician and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Sweden from 1969 to 1976 and 1982 to 1986. He was assassinated in 1986.

The annual Olof Palme Prize is awarded to people chosen by the fund’s board. The prize consists of a diploma and 100,000 US dollars.

The ceremony will be held in the Stockholm Concert Hall on February 1, 2023.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told Ritzau news agency on Sunday that Iran's ambassador in Copenhagen will be summoned to convey the Danish government's anger at the Islamic Republic's aggression against its people.

The Danish Foreign Ministry also told AFP that the meeting will take place on Monday.

Meanwhile, Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib wrote on Twitter that she was "horrified" by the executions.

“Together with likeminded EU member states, we will summon the Iranian ambassador. New EU-sanctions are on the table,” reads her tweet.

On Saturday, the judiciary of the Islamic Republic executed two protesters, Mohammad Hosseini and Mohammad Mehdi Karami, on the charge of allegedly participating in the killing of a Basij member named Ruhollah Ajamian.

The execution of the two men came after a hasty trial and without their right to choose a lawyer. Many jurists and human rights activists described the trials as “unfair” and questioned the verdicts.

Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra wrote on Twitter Saturday that he was “appalled by the horrible executions of demonstrators in Iran,” and that the ambassador of the Islamic Republic in Amsterdam will be summoned.

He also said that the fourth EU sanctions package is being prepared, which will be discussed at the next meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.

The executions drew widespread Western condemnations.

Ali Sharifzadeh Ardakani, Mohammad Hosseini's lawyer, published a photo of a request for retrial, saying the execution of his client was "unjust".

“Considering the call for appeal and submission of documents, including harassment of my client to extract a confession and documents regarding his mental illness, carrying out the sentence was unjust,” he added in a tweet.

Sharifzadeh said that a day after the verdict’s confirmation, he filed a request for retrial, but officials turned down his request.

Mohammad Aghasi, the lawyer of Mohammad-Mehdi Karami, also said in an interview that “They executed my client so quickly that they didn't even give him a chance to write a petition for retrial.”

Both lawyers were not allowed to defend their clients in court, as Iran’s judiciary only recognizes those attorneys that it selects and appoints to political cases.

Aghasi pointed out that the Supreme Court also failed, because the sentences should have been overturned when the defendants did not have a lawyer of their choice.

Based on the statements of the defendants and their lawyers these two protesters were tortured physically and mentally to extract confessions, a common practice by Islamic Republic officials.

Despite public anger over the executions, the judiciary continues to issue death sentences and exerts pressure on hundreds of imprisoned protesters and their families.