Following relentless efforts from Habibollah Latifi’s family and his defense team, along with support from the people of Sanandaj, Iranian authorities announced a stay of execution for the imprisoned student.
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reports that in Sanandaj and other cities in the Province of Kurdistan people had been shouting out from their roofs to stop Latifi’s execution.
Latifi’s family together with about 300 Sanandaj citizens had gathered in front of the city prison from the early hours of the day until the authorities finally informed the crowd that Latifi’s sentence would not be carried out.
Saleh Nikbakht, one of Latifi’s lawyers said: “City of Sanandaj judiciary officials have agreed to postpone the execution of the Kurdish prisoner, Habibollah Latifi until our application for a pardon is processed.”
Zamaneh was also informed that Latifi’s sister was allowed to visit him in prison and reports that his brother is in good health.
In several European capitals, human rights activists had also gathered in demonstration in front of Iranian embassies to protest against Latifi’s death sentence.
The campaign to save Habibollah Latifi from execution has announced that his sentence has not been rescinded and they must await the final decision of the judiciary in this case.
The campaign has urged all the people and organizations that have made efforts to stop this execution to continue monitoring the case until the death sentence is officially rescinded.
In the summer of 2008, Habibollah Latifi, a law student at the University of Ilam was sentenced to death in a court behind closed doors without the presence of his attorneys for the charge of enmity against God.
Latifi contends that his confessions were coerced and his lawyers maintain that there are several shortcomings in the legal proceedings against him.
Reportedly Latifi’s sentence was issued at the behest of the ministry of intelligence officials who are insistent on seeing it carried out.
