Latest news with #PakhshanAzizi
Al Bawaba
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Bawaba
Pakhshan Azizi still faces execution, Iran rejects retrial
Published April 7th, 2025 - 11:22 GMT ALBAWABA - Iran's Supreme Court recently sparked outrage after rejecting a retrial for Pakhshan Azizi, an Iranian-Kurdish activist and social worker who is set to be executed on charges made in July last year, according to Al Hurra. This marks the second time that Iran's Supreme Court has rejected a retrial for Azizi. The renowned activist was arrested alongside her family on August 4, 2023, after she was accused by Tehran's Revolutionary Court, Branch 26, of "baghy (armed rebellion) through membership in armed opposition groups." They want to execute this brave woman! Please be her voice before it's too late! Pakhshan Azizi, a courageous social worker who fought against ISIS in Syria and helped the wounded, was arrested and imprisoned upon returning to Iran. The corrupt judicial system has sentenced her… — Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) April 6, 2025 After two weeks of Azizi's arrest, Iranian authorities released her family on bail but kept the Kurdish activist detained, denying her access to lawyers and family visits for several months. According to the UN, Reports by human rights experts also indicate that Azizi was subjected to "severe psychological and physical torture" during her confinement. One of Pakhshan Azizi's lawyers, Maziar Tataei, stated on Sunday that "The Supreme Court has rejected the request for a retrial without even requesting the case file, and the defense arguments presented by Pakhshan's lawyers have been dismissed as baseless." Rejecting the retrial twice makes Azizi more prone to execution, as concerns over her life flooded social media. Al Hurra reported that Iran's Supreme Court approved Azizi's death sentence, despite international calls from human rights organizations. A human rights expert said, "The charges against Ms. Pakhshan Azizi do not meet the threshold of 'most serious crimes' required by international law for the death penalty." They further added, "Her death sentence constitutes a serious violation of international human rights law." © 2000 - 2025 Al Bawaba (
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Actual Hope from Iran on International Women's Day
A woman without a headscarf holds a sign reading, "For Freedom" in Farsi, beside a burning dumpster amid protests against the Islamic Republic of Iran's mandatory hijab law in Tehran on Oct. 1, 2022. Protests erupted across the country after Mahsa Amini died in the custody of "morality police" who had forcibly detained her for "improper hijab." Credit - Anonymous photographer/Middle East Images/Redux The scale and intensity of the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' protests in Iran were initially astonishing. The protests, which began in 2022 and ran into the following January, offered a new perspective on Iranian society. Why, in a country where where economic crises abound—and were the basis of large demonstrations in 2017 and 2018, did women's protests gain the solidarity and support of broad segments of society? The answer sheds light on lesser-heard narratives about contemporary Iran. The 2022 protests initially erupted in response to the systematic repression of women through compulsory hijab, laws enforcing a conservative Islamic dress code. However, over time, they brought deeper societal issues to the surface and, at their peak, he protests fostered a unique sense of solidarity across the country, with diverse voices heard from Kurdistan and Baluchistan to Tehran and including social, civil society, and political groups. As a result, the struggle against gender oppression became entwined with the struggles of marginalized ethnic groups, labor unions, and civil organizations. This suggests that Iran is experiencing interwoven waves of protests, each more intense than the last. The 2022 protests demonstrated that women, alongside other oppressed and disadvantaged groups, are at the heart of these movements. They will play a central role in shaping the future of Iranian society. Even today, a significant number of Iran's political prisoners are women and three women—Pakhshan Azizi, Varisha Moradi, and Sharifeh Mohammadi—have been sentenced to execution. Despite the severe repression by state forces, the 2022 protests have yielded positive results. After the Iranian government spent months drafting a new 'Chastity and Hijab' bill, it ultimately withdrew from enforcing it, fearing renewed protests. At the same time, despite the coercive efforts of the government, women have successfully imposed their demand for the right to choose their own dress code. The resistance against compulsory hijab has even drawn in men, who not only refuse to align with the government's policies but also oppose the repression of women protesters. So the women's struggle has not only forced the Islamic Republic to retreat, but also created cracks in the patriarchal structures of Iranian society. Violence against women continues, often enforced by husbands or male family members. But it is undeniable that the fight for gender equality has challenged traditional concepts such as 'honor' and 'family dignity.' Decades ago, most women who advocated for gender equality or freedom of dress felt compelled to demonstrate their loyalty to traditional values. Today, they no longer feel the need to pledge allegiance to religious and cultural norms. Women's activism has disrupted the traditional patriarchal family structure, diminished the influence of certain Islamic laws, and weakened religious and traditional values. By demanding their rights, women have played a crucial role in Iran's secularization and democratic aspirations. The roots of resistance by Iranian women date back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during the Constitutional Revolution. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the status of women worsened both in the private and public spheres. Almost immediately after the establishment of the Islamic Republic, women faced calls for compulsory hijab. But tens of thousands marched on March 8, 1979, International Women's Day, chanting, 'In the dawn of freedom, there is an absence of freedom,' and forced the government to back down. At that time, secular women's groups began organizing. But in the chaos of the post-revolution period and, especially, the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq War, these groups were repressed. Not only did enforcement of compulsory hijab go forward, but the regime's anti-women laws also became institutionalized. Coupled with the eight-year war, the state suppression temporarily silenced the women's movement. But resistance continued in different forms. The sociologist Asef Bayat has documented the impact of everyday resistance against the Islamic Republic's repression, gradually challenging both the clerical establishment and traditional patriarchal beliefs. Because a significant portion of the violence against women stems from the ideological foundations of the Iranian regime, the women's movement has directly confronted the dominant ideology of the government, and its religious this context, it becomes clear that the leadership of women in the 2022 protests was neither sudden nor spontaneous. Rather, they were rooted in a long history of organizing in the public sphere and resisting oppression in everyday life. My sisters, women's rights activists, and feminists across the globe, the time has come for us to unite and criminalize gender apartheid as a crime against humanity. Our strength lies in solidarity, in sisterhood, and in standing together to realize women's rights. Not long ago I had an inspiring conversation via TIME Magazine with Margaret Atwood about gender apartheid and the similarities between what we face today and the dystopian world of her historic novel The Handmaid's Tale, which I read in prison. What has been happening in Iran is a reminder of resilience of women in the face of oppression. Listen to the experience of women in Iran and Afghanistan—help us fight with gender apartheid by amplifying this fight. As March 8 approaches, let's join hands and stand together for a world free from violence against women and gender apartheid. Let's fight for equality, democracy, and freedom. Let's remember that the shared path to 'Woman, Life, Freedom'—Jin, Jiyan, Azadî—knows no borders. Contact us at letters@
Voice of America
17-02-2025
- Politics
- Voice of America
VOA Persian: Iranian lawyers protest death sentences of 3 female political prisoners
Over 200 Iranian lawyers have issued a statement protesting the death sentences of three female political prisoners: Pakhshan Azizi, Varisheh Moradi, and Sharifeh Mohammadi. The statement, signed by 229 lawyers, calls for an "immediate halt to the execution" of Pakhshan Azizi and urges "respect for the legal rights" of Varisheh Moradi and Sharifeh Mohammadi in the handling of their appeals against the death sentences. Click here for the full story in Persian.
Rudaw Net
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Rudaw Net
Amnesty urges Iran to halt Kurdish woman's imminent execution
Also in Iran Iran rejects the revival of the US's 'failed' maximum pressure policy Urmia hot spring attracts tourists looking to ward off winter chill Iran condemns 'dangerous' US plan to move Palestinians from Gaza Iranian rapper faces new charges A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Amnesty International on Monday called on Iran to 'immediately' release Kurdish humanitarian aid worker Pakhshan Azizi and call off her execution, saying she was sentenced in a 'grossly unfair' trial. 'The international community must immediately urge the Iranian authorities to halt the execution of arbitrarily detained humanitarian aid worker Pakhshan Azizi, who was sentenced to death following a grossly unfair trial before a Revolutionary Court last year,' said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa. Azizi, 40, had her request for a retrial rejected by Iran's Supreme Court, her lawyer said on Friday. She was sentenced to death for being a member of Iranian Kurdish groups considered terrorists by Tehran, such as the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK). Her lawyer has denied she ever took up arms but said she was an aid worker in refugee camps in northeast Syria (Rojava) and Shingal (Sinjar) where she was helping those affected by Islamic State (ISIS) attacks. She was sentenced to death in June 2024 for charges of 'armed rebellion.' Amnesty said that Azizi was detained solely for her humanitarian activities and 'instead of facing imminent execution she should be immediately and unconditionally released.' 'The death penalty is abhorrent in all circumstances; but imposing it after a grossly unfair trial before a Revolutionary Court, in which Pakhshan Azizi's allegations of torture and other ill-treatment, including gender-based violence, have gone uninvestigated, renders its use arbitrary and illustrates yet again the Iranian authorities' shameless disregard for the right to life,' it added. The United States and the European Union in January called on Iran to overturn her death sentence. Iran ranks second globally for known executions, according to Amnesty.
The Independent
31-01-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Iran's record execution rate casts shadow on death penalty reprieve for Kurdish activist Pakhshan Azizi
Iran has given temporary reprieve from execution to Kurdish activist Pakhshan Azizi, but the uncertainty has only increased the agony of her family, rights activists said. Ms Azizi, 40, who worked to shelter women and children displaced by the war in Syria, received last-minute relief from capital punishment over the weekend, but activists fighting her case are not resting yet. 'While this is a temporary win, we have seen many times in the past that the person is still executed. By no means can we say this relief is trustworthy or that it has taken the pressure off us in any sense,' Skylar Thompson, deputy director of Human Rights Activists in Iran, said. Ms Azizi has been convicted of entering Iran and 'inflaming the situation' during the Mahsa Amini protests in September 2022. The unrest, spearheaded by women, had erupted after Amini, 22, was arrested by morality police, allegedly for not wearing her hijab appropriately, and died in custody. Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has declared in the past that 'unveiling is both religiously forbidden and politically forbidden'. The protests started with the slogan 'Women, Life, Freedom' but quickly morphed into open calls for revolt against the Iranian government, prompting a crackdown that, according to the news agency Associated Press, left 500 people dead and over 22,000 detained. 'She entered the country to inflame the situation in Iran, contacted the families of those killed in the riots of 2022-23, explained to them the goals and programmes of the opposition group, and encouraged them to continue their protests and not to give up the blood revenge for their children,' the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran ruled while convicting Ms Azizi. The activist, held in Tehran's Evin jail, hasn't been allowed to meet her family since last July, when she was sentenced. She was convicted on charges of 'armed insurrection' through 'effective activities and efforts using weapons to advance the goals of groups that have carried out armed uprisings against the Islamic government and whose leadership remains intact', according to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network. The activist has denied any involvement in armed operations. Ms Azizi is one of at least 54 prisoners who have been condemned to death on political or security charges in the country. Iran executed 853 people in 2003 and 930 last year, the most in a decade, sending a chilling message to dissidents in the country and prompting United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk to urge Tehran to 'stem this ever-swelling tide of executions'. 'As Iran faces mounting international scrutiny, civil society must seize this moment to amplify ongoing abuses, particularly as executions in 2024 have surpassed a staggering 930 cases," Ms Thompson said. Rights activists have called on the international community to exert pressure on the Islamic Republic to terminate the death sentences of female convicts in particular and offer them fair trials. 'The international community too often leaves Iranian women behind, only paying attention when polarizing events make headlines,' Ms Thompson told The Independent. 'But the reality is that women in Iran, and Iranians more broadly, face systematic human rights violations every day, amounting to crimes against humanity.' She said world leaders owed it to Iranians to keep human rights at the forefront of any dialogue with Tehran. 'Any negotiations with Iran must put human rights on the table,' she said, 'silence on this issue is complicity.'
