While unable to conceal his anger and despair over the forced cessation of the execution of three young protesters, this morning, Ebrahim Raisi, the head of the Iranian regime’s Judiciary, described the Iranian people’s massive social media campaign against the execution verdict as “propaganda and misinformation” carried out by online bots. The brazen remarks are reminiscent of the remarks of General Azhari, the former Shah’s army strongman and prime minister, in December 1978, who described as “voices on tape” the voices of millions of Iranians chanting, “Death to the Shah,” which were heard all over Iran.
Terrified by the encouraging impact of the regime’s temporary retreat in the execution of three young protesters, the regime’s Judiciary Chief threatened: “Propaganda and assaults against the Judiciary’s decisions will have no impact at all. … Criticisms should be heard, and the reaction should be logical. But riots, disruption, and insecurity is the system’s red line, the country’s red line, and no one should be allowed under any circumstances to cause disruptions and insecurity in the country.” In order to boost the morale of henchmen who call themselves “judges,” Raisi urged them to “be vigilant against violent crimes and they must firmly deal with outlaws and defiant individuals to prevent them from entering into the legal field.”
On the other hand, Brig. Gen. Gholam-Hossein Esmaili, the regime’s Judiciary Spokesperson announced that a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Mahmoud Mousavi Majd, 34, who has been imprisoned since September 2018 on charges of spying, was executed this morning.
Mousavi, whose father worked with the regime’s embassy in Syria since the 1980s, has been in Syria from childhood, and since the outbreak of the criminal war against the people of Syria until his arrest he served the terrorist Qods Force. For that reason, he received a ring as reward from the regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. In September 2018, Mousavi was arrested by the Qods Force intelligence unit in Syria. He spent 20 days in a Qods Force prison in Damascus. He was then transferred to an IRGC intelligence prison in Tehran and later to Evin Prison. He was then sentenced to death by Salavati at the 15th branch of the regime’s revolutionary court. It has been said that the reason for the rapid execution of Mousavi was his extensive information and knowledge about the thefts and crimes committed by the senior officials of the IRGC and terrorist Qods Force. To prevent the possible leak of this information and using the pretext that the case is confidential, Mousavi’s lawyers were not permitted to meet with him in person.
On June 8, 2020, Esmaili announced at a press conference that Mousavi has been sentenced to death for spying and providing intelligence about the movements of former Qods Force Commander Qassem Soleimani. However, the Press Office of the Judiciary said in a statement that all the judicial procedures relating to Mousavi was completed long before the elimination of Soleimani and his case has nothing to do with that elimination.
Despite Mousavi’s background and crimes, the Iranian Resistance strongly condemns his sentencing and execution, which is in violation of all humanitarian and legal principles and standards. The religious fascism ruling Iran wants to use these types of executions as a means to instill fear among the IRGC to prevent defections on the one hand, and on the other to create an atmosphere of terror in society to prevent popular uprisings, while also compensating for the cessation of the three young protesters.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
(July 20, 2020)
