NCRI – The Iranian authorities must immediately halt the execution of Mahmoud Barati, a teacher who was convicted of drug-related offences following an unfair trial that is believed to have included a confession obtained through torture and other ill-treatment, Amnesty International said on Monday.
According to contacts in Ghezel Hesar prison, Mahmoud Barati has been transferred to solitary confinement and is scheduled to be executed at dawn tomorrow morning (8 September 2015), Amnesty said on its website.
“Mahmoud Barati’s execution must immediately be halted. International law does not allow for the use of death penalty for drug-related offences. The Iranian authorities must immediately quash his death sentence,” said Audrey Gaughran, Director of Global Issues at Amnesty International.
“The Iranian authorities must end their unprecedented killing spree – more than 700 people have been executed so far this year, most of them convicted on drug-related charges.”
According to a contact in Ghezel Hesar prison, following his arrest 10 years ago, Mahmoud Barati was held in a detention centre of the Office to Combat Drug Offences for 10 days where he was allegedly subjected to torture and other ill-treatment to “confess”. He subsequently made statements to both the prosecutor and the court retracting these “confessions”.
The prison contact also raised concerns that the principal witness against Mahmoud Barati may have retracted his testimony, Amnesty said.