Iran has slammed a report from a United Nations investigator that cites a “dramatic increase” in executions in Tehran along with other alleged human rights abuses.
U.N. special investigator Ahmed Shaheed issued an interim report on Wednesday that says more than 200 officially announced executions have taken place in Iran so far this year. He also accused Iranian authorities of conducting more than 300 secret executions at the Vakilabad prison in 2010.
Additionally, Shaheed said Iran has been detaining political dissidents for prolonged periods and persecuting religious and ethnic minorities.
Iranian judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani says Shaheed's report is “full of lies” and reflects the “hostile views” of exiled Iranian dissidents and “nothing more.”
He also accused the U.S. of supporting terrorist operations against Iran and said he had ordered the country's state prosecutor to gather evidence proving U.S. crimes in Iran and elsewhere.
Shaheed's findings were based largely on interviews with victims of state-sponsored abuse because Tehran has refused to allow him into the country.
The U.S. Wednesday urged the international community to “redouble its condemnation” of Iran for the alleged crimes. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the report shows Iran is continuing a “brutal repression” of its citizens. He called on Iran to give Shaheed immediate access to the country.
The U.N. Human Rights Council named Shaheed as a Special Rapporteur on Iran in March.---VOA News
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