Amnesty Warns Of Execution Risk For Iranian Minority Detainee

Amnesty International has issued a warning regarding the potential execution of Reza (Gholamreza) Rasaei, a detainee linked to last year's nationwide protests in Iran.

The international human rights organization reports that Rasaei, hailing from Iran's marginalized Kurdish and Yarsan ethnic and religious minorities, has allegedly been subjected to torture.

The Yarsan faith, also known as Ahl-e Haqq, is among the oldest Middle Eastern religious traditions, with an estimated three million followers in Iran, primarily in the western Kurdish regions, and an additional 120,000 to 150,000 in Iraq, known as Kaka'i.

Yarsan adherents have encountered various challenges, including difficulties in registering their children as Yarsan at birth, restrictions on constructing places of worship, and the constant fear of persecution for printing their holy book.

According to Amnesty's report, Rasaei underwent an "unfair trial" on October 7 in Kermanshah province, during which he was convicted of "murder" and subsequently sentenced to death, with his forced confessions tainted by torture serving as evidence.

Amnesty says Rasaei was convicted of involvement in the killing of an agent, identified as a member of the Revolutionary Guards by Iranian state media, during a protest in Sahneh, Kermanshah province, on November 18, 2022. Rasaei vehemently denies any involvement. Additionally, he was convicted of "disrupting public order" and sentenced to one year in prison along with 74 lashes.

Amnesty International has called upon Iran's Chief Justice, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, to "immediately quash the conviction and death sentence against Rasaei."