Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/LONDON: Amnesty International has expressed fears that at least 27 people in Iran were at “great risk” of execution in what it dubbed grossly unfair sham trials as Iran hanged the second man in connection with protests on Monday. Those at risk also include three juveniles, according to the Oslo-based group.
The human rights organization said, in a letter addressed to Iranian Chief of Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei earlier in the month, that some of those at risk had been sentenced to death. It said others were facing crime charges that could lead to their execution. Iran Human Rights said on Saturday estimated the actual number as much higher, as most families were keeping quiet due to pressure from certain quarters. Amnesty International has estimated the figure to be at least 39.
“People denied the right to adequate defense”
It said all people they considered to be at risk of execution had been denied the right to adequate defense and access to lawyers of their choosing. It further said that they were also denied the right to receive a fair, public hearing adding that three children are being tried in adult courts which is a violation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child which Iran had ratified. Amnesty quoted sources saying that several defendants had been tortured, and their “confessions” were used as evidence.
A protester, Majid Reza Rahnavard (23) was hanged on Monday for killing two security forces personnel with a knife and injuring four other people, according to the judiciary’s Mizan Online news agency. He was arrested in November and executed within just over three weeks, the rights group said.
In the first case of the death penalty being used against the protesters, the authorities hanged Mohsen Shekari, also 23, on Thursday on charges of wounding a security forces personnel.
The Amnesty letter urged the authorities to immediately quash all convictions and death sentences. It further asked the Iranian government to refrain from seeking further death sentences. It also urged them to ensure that anyone charged with a recognizable criminal offense enjoys the right to free and fair trial, meeting international fair trial standards. The Amnesty also urged the Iranian government to release all the detainees for peacefully exercising their human rights.
![NEW YORK: Pakistan's former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, leading Pakistan’s high-level parliamentary delegation, on Tuesday warned that India's aggressive actions pose a serious threat to peace in South Asia and urged the international community to take note of India's aggressive conduct. Bilawal was addressing a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York on recent regional developments after the military conflict between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani delegation is in New York to present Pakistan’s stance on the military escalation with India and to challenge New Delhi’s narrative at the global level. The visit is part of Pakistan’s sustained diplomatic outreach to brief key UN stakeholders on the alarming regional situation. The Pakistani delegation is also scheduled to arrive in Washington today, where it plans to engage with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, other senior officials, lawmakers, and think tanks till June 6. The team will also visit London and Brussels. Speaking at the press conference, Bilawal said that he wanted to use the opportunity to share Pakistan’s perspective on the recent military conflict with India in the wake of the Pahalgam attack and the way forward. Bilawal said that the “illegal strikes” launched by India as part of its ‘Operation Sindoor’ were “in violation of the UN Charter, international law”. He said the attacks had targeted civilian infrastructure, places of worship, energy infrastructure and innocent women and children. He said India had used the April 22 terrorist attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s (IIOJK) Pahalgam as a pretext to launch the attack inside Pakistan. Following the Pahalgam incident, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered publicly to India that Pakistan was ready to be part of any impartial international investigation into this attack. “We did so because we were confident, our hands were clean and we had nothing to do with this terrorist attack. “We expressed our sympathy with the victims of terrorism and Pakistan has consistently and unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” he said, adding that PM Sharif had immediately expressed Pakistan’s willingness to India and the global community to be part of any impartial international investigation. “Indian government refused Pakistan's offer and chose instead to conduct their illegal strikes. Pakistan only then acted in self-defence, we never initiated any violence against India,” Bilawal said. Bilawal emphasised that Pakistan never initiated hostilities against India but responded to Indian aggression by downing six Indian fighter jets. "The Pakistani military had responded with precision the night of the first Indian attack and only targeted and downed six planes because we believed those were the ones to release their load on Pakistan”. He stated that US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio played a vital role in achieving a ceasefire during heightened tensions between the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours. “We’ve seen during the course of this conflict how quickly the escalation ladder between our two countries rose and the concern is that the next time there is such an incident, there may not be time for the international community to intervene before things get a lot worse. That is why it is absolutely important for Pakistan and the international community to continue to pursue dialogue and diplomacy as the only viable path to peace.” He said Pakistan’s position was to hold a “comprehensive dialogue” with India that would include the issue of terrorism as well. The head of the Pakistani delegation said that no civilized nation can support the use of water as a weapon and urged the international community to play its part, questioning, "What would be the global reaction if someone’s lifeline was cut off?" He stressed that Pakistan has paid a heavy price in the fight against terrorism and has suffered the most. “The single largest number of terrorist attacks that take place in any one country is Pakistan. The single largest number of victims of terrorism is Pakistan. I myself have suffered at the hands of terrorists. My mother [Benazir Bhutto] was assassinated by the terrorists.” Bilawal also criticised India for targeting water reservoirs and civilian areas, including mosques, during its attacks. Calling negotiations the only path to peace, Bilawal reiterated that the unresolved Kashmir dispute remains the root cause of regional instability. He urged the global community to take notice of India’s aggressive conduct.](https://wenewsenglish.com/storage/2025/06/Bilawal-Bhutto-Zardari-300x180.jpg)
