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Iran’s Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence against Swedish-Iranian Habib Chaab, news agencies report. He disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 2020.
Chaab, with both Swedish and Iranian citizenship, has been sentenced to death for alleged terrorist crimes.
He is accused, according to the court documents, of acting as a leader of the separatist group ASMLA, which is labeled a terrorist by Iran. The court also accuses him of planning and carrying out bombings in Khuzestan, an Iranian province bordering Iraq, in 2018. Many of the victims belonged to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. ASMLA wants to see an independent state in the province.
The Swedish Foreign Ministry has previously said that it is in contact with representatives of Iran in the case, and that it has unsuccessfully requested consular access.
Chaab disappeared in Turkey in October 2020. The Turkish government accuses Iran of abducting Chaab from the country, and Turkey’s intelligence service has released surveillance footage purported to show the kidnapping.
Chaab has been described as a political activist who lived in exile in Sweden for several years. After his arrest, he was shown on Iranian television, and then confessed to the deadly crime. However, the outside world usually does not trust such confessions, as they are often feared to have been made after torture.
Another Swedish-Iranian is imprisoned in Iran in a similar situation. It is about the doctor and researcher Ahmadreza Djalali, who was arrested in 2016 when he visited the former homeland. He is accused of collaboration with the Israeli spy service, and is also sentenced to death. His execution date has been postponed several times.
Facts
Executions in Iran
During January and February this year, Iran executed at least 94 people, according to Amnesty.
According to the human rights organization Iran Human Rights, a total of 127 people have been executed so far in 2023.
This is a large increase in executed death sentences compared to the same period last year. Throughout 2022, over 500 people were executed.
Iran executes the second most people in the world, after China. Executions are often preceded by mock trials. The accused is rarely given the opportunity to defend himself with a lawyer and has often been subjected to torture. Coerced confessions are common. Executions often take place by hanging, sometimes in public.
Source: Amnesty International and Iran Human Rights
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ASMLA
ASMLA stands for Arab struggle movement for the liberation of Ahwaz.
The group has since the turn of the millennium fought for independence for the Arab minority in Iran. The group is labeled a terrorist by the Iranian regime and is accused of involvement in several bloody attacks. Most famous is the attack on a parade in the city of Ahvaz in the southwestern part of the country in 2018, which claimed more than a dozen lives, including several children. ASMLA denies involvement.
During the trial of Habib Chaab, who has been singled out as a leader, prosecutors have claimed that Iran’s arch-enemies Israel and Saudi Arabia support ASMLA. They also accuse Denmark and Belgium of protecting members.
Iran’s Arab minority is found mainly in the oil-rich Khuzestan province. Despite its natural resources, the region is very undeveloped and struggles with both economic and political problems.
Source: BBC
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