UN Watch Moves To Overturn Iran’s Appointment As Chair Of UNHRC Social Forum

Islamic Republic Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said Tuesday "The [death] sentences of those [protesters] who were/are supposed to be executed for their crimes during the riots have either been or will be carried out without any consideration while ensuring full observance of legal procedures, justice and fairness."

Emphasizing that the sentences will be implemented “without any delay,” he also defiantly called on security and intelligence agencies to arrest women who are flouting mandatory hijab rules and to hand them over to the judicial authorities for “severe punishment.”

Accusing protesters and those unveiling in public of being connected to “the enemies,” Ejei emphatically vowed: “Be sure that these elements will be severely punished.”

In the Islamic Republic's jargon "enemy" is used to refer primarily to the United States and Israel, and sometimes to their allies, and recently every entity and individual who has expressed support for the current wave of anti regime protests.

“The enemies are trying to create a divide in our society by psychological operations and bombarding the minds of young people and by taking advantage of some existing weaknesses,” the chief justice said, claiming these 'enemies' are trying to divide Iranian society.

Since the early weeks of the nationwide protests ignited by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini by hijab or ‘morality’ police in September, the staunch regime mouthpiece has repeatedly ordered judges to issue tough sentences to protesters and those flouting regime diktat.

"I have instructed our judges to avoid showing unnecessary sympathy to main elements of these riots and issue tough sentences for them while separating the less guilty people," he said in October. In April, he warned of strict punishment for women flouting hijab rules.

Following the death of Amini for "improper hijab," a growing number of women have been ditching their veils in public, risking arrest by defying hijab laws in public places such as streets, malls, shops, banks, cafes, and even airports with videos and photos surfacing online everyday describing scenes with women casting off their headscarves as the new normal in Iran.

The Islamic Republic has intensified its killing trend in recent weeks, fueling further protests across the country. At least 259 Iranians have been executed since January alone, according to the United Nations.

Amid a spike in executions since late April, on May 19, authorities arbitrarily executed three tortured protesters, Majid Kazemi, Saeed Yaghoubi and Saleh Mirhashemi who were unjustly convicted and sentenced to death in Isfahan (Esfahan).

The deaths brought to at least seven the number of protesters hanged since nationwide protests broke out in September 2022 following the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. The unrest posed the biggest internal challenge to the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979.

Earlier in March, Amnesty International said at least seven individuals in Iran face the death sentence in connection with protests, while dozens of others are at risk of being sentenced to death.

So far, around 750 civilians have been killed by security forces and at least 30,000 arrested. While many have been released, around 1,500 face criminal charges, and at least 80 detainees face the death sentence for the “moharebeh” and “corruption on earth”, Islamic-Arabic terms meaning to go against the will of God. Both carries the death penalty.

Videos shared on social media show that the Taliban forces are stationed in the region with heavy military equipment.

A video shows a convoy of Taliban tanks moving from Herat towards the Iranian border.

Local sources say the recent tensions between Iran and the Taliban started after they prevented the construction of a road and the installation of barbed wire by the border guards of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The sources also added that the border forces of the Taliban and border guards of Iran got into a verbal tension last Friday in Islam Qala.

However, the Iranian media wrote on Tuesday evening that the situation at the border is calm.

Tasnim news agency, affiliated with the IRGC, denied any tension between the Taliban and the border guards of the Islamic Republic in the area.

The Taliban authorities have not yet officially commented on sending troops to the border.

The tension at Islam Qala comes as the Taliban and the Iranian border guards clashed on Saturday in Nimroz. Two Iranian guards and one Taliban fighter were killed after shooting broke out near a border post.

It was not immediately clear what had caused the incident, in which several people were also injured, but it came amid tensions over water rights.

Iran has accused Afghanistan's Taliban of violating a 1973 treaty by restricting the flow of water from the Helmand River to Iran's parched eastern regions, an accusation denied by the Taliban.

A group of doctors, lawyers and civil activists such as the Kian Foundation and the Simourq Association are among the signatories to the letter to Vaclav Balek, the head of the UN Human Rights Council for 2023.

They defiantly condemned the appointment of Iran's UN ambassador Ali Bahraini as the forum’s chair after Vaclav Balek said in a statement earlier this month that he had decided to appoint Bahraini following the receipt of a nomination from regional coordinators.

The forum to be held in Geneva on November 2 and 3 will focus on the contribution of science, technology, and innovation to the promotion of human rights including in the context of post-pandemic recovery.

In their letter, the signatories stated that according to the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, the violence of the security forces of the Islamic Republic during the nationwide protests led to the death of hundreds, including dozens of children and women, while hundreds of other protesters were seriously injured, and thousands were arrested.

Earlier, UN Watch launched a petition to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to stop the Islamic Republic from chairing the forum and said there were still six months left to cancel the appointment.

The Islamic Republic was also voted out of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in December for policies contrary to the rights of women and girls. It is in addition, also investigating rights abuses in Iran in a special committee, while simultaneously allowing the regime to chair a key rights event.

As Brett McGurk, President Biden’s senior Middle East adviser, took a low-profile trip to Oman earlier this month for talks on possible diplomatic outreach to Iran, it seems this is more than ‘talks’. 

Neither the US nor Oman made the visit public, suggesting only something as serious as Iran could have called for such secrecy. Though the Biden administration has spoken of their desire to quash Iran’s nuclear program, its softly softly approach has called into question the lengths it will go to. 

Oman has recently been pitched as a broker between Iran and Saudi in the lead-up to the détente in March and stands a good chance of holding Iran’s hand as it deals with its biggest enemy. 

Behind the scenes, Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on Tuesday that work with Iran on its nuclear enrichment is “a work in progress”. At a press conference in New York, he said the latest report of his visit in March will be released soon but admitted “there are a number of issues we are still working with Iran on, with some we are making progress and with others, no, so it’s an ongoing thing and we haven’t reached an end station”, explaining that it is a “complex” array of issues as the IAEA seeks clarity on three locations being investigated. 

However, whether the agency has really won greater oversight powers as agreed in March, is to be seen. The undeclared Marivan site near Abadeh, south of Esfahan, remains a hot topic. He said the IAEA is yet to implement the terms of the joint statement including additional monitoring capabilities for the IAEA. 

Speaking to Axios, a White House National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson downplayed the speculation of a new deal circulating in Jerusalem. “There is no US discussion of an interim deal and no discussion of sanctions relief, or closing safeguards cases," the spokesperson said, meanwhile quoting a senior European diplomat who said that the US is indeed working with the Omanis on the Iranian issue.

Keeping mum on talks, the White House NSC spokesperson deferred to ‘security concerns’ as the reason for the lack of transparency, but admitted discussions centered around regional diplomacy, "of which Iran is one aspect.”

Axios claims the Israeli government is concerned about a possible push by the Biden administration for a “freeze for freeze” interim agreement with Iran, which will be subject of discussions for Israeli minister for strategic affairs Ron Dermer and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi who are expected to discuss these concerns during their visit to the White House tomorrow (Thursday).

Meanwhile, as diplomatic chess pieces continue to shift, the Korea Economic Daily reported on Tuesday that South Korea and the US are discussing ways to release $7 billion in Iranian funds held in South Korea, a South Korean debt for oil imports from Iran due to global sanctions.

Just like the high-profile case of British-Iranian dual-national Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, held under ransom for a British debt to Iran, it is highly likely the deal has the same premise - cash for hostages. Currently there are three dual nationals with American citizenship and two individuals with US permanent residency held by Iran on trumped-up charges of espionage.

Speaking to NPR this week, the US envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, continued to stress that diplomacy is the Biden administration’s first choice. “I think it's been proven to be the most effective way and the most sustainable way to make sure that Iran doesn't acquire a bomb,” he said, claiming to have forged “a credible diplomatic path”. 

In spite of the imbalance of attacks on the US personnel and bases in the Middle East versus retaliatory attacks carried out by the US, he still claims to also have “a credible deterrence path”. As of March, Iran had launched 83 attacks on the US in the likes of Iraq and Syria, with only four military responses, since the start of the Biden administration.

He said: “In other words, [the] president has said all options are on the table. You could imagine what that means. He has said explicitly that the military option will be on the table. It is far from the preferred option, but he will do what it takes to make sure Iran doesn't acquire a bomb. And we hope that we could resolve this through diplomatic means, and we're prepared to go down that path.”

According to the report released on Tuesday, in 2021, the population below the absolute poverty line in the country increased to 30.4%.

Based on the report, unemployment, lack of a higher education degree, having children and being a tenant are among the factors that increase poverty in the country.

The report shows that Iran's economic situation has been deteriorating long before the global sanctions hit the country's economy.

According to a report published by ILNA in January, one-third of the country’s population is now living in extreme poverty, after the number almost doubled in one year from 2020 to 2021. However, it is believed that the number could in reality be far higher. 

According to official figures released by the interior ministry, around 60 percent of the 84 million Iranians live under the relative poverty line of whom between 20 to 30 million live in "absolute poverty".

Economic failures of the regime are becoming more and more difficult to justify, even given US sanctions. "The main reason for the [economic] problems [in the past ten years] is not just the sanctions. A major part of these were caused by wrong decisions and inefficiency," Supreme leader Ali Khamenei admitted in a speech last year.