The death sentence of Jafar Kazemi, Iranian prisoner who is accused of “ties with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran and enmity against God” has been sent to the enforcement branch of the judiciary.
“The ministry of intelligence has charged Jafar Kazemi on twelve counts and he has pleaded innocent on all charges,” Roudabeh Akabri, Kazemi’s wife has told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.
She added that her husband has been accused of “coordinating” student protests and “supplying funds” for them as well as arranging the transfer of 30 individuals to Camp Ashraf where the dissident group People’s Mojahedin has been based since the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s.
Iran regards the People’s Mojahedin Organization as one of its arch-enemies and refers to it as a terrorist group.
Roudabeh Akbari admits that her husband has filmed the post-election protests of last year and given it to an individual for delivery to Camp Ashraf but other than that, according to Akbari, her husband has not engaged in any other activity.
Kazemi’s wife adds: “When your son goes to Ashraf, they have certain expectations from you, and my husband satisfied these expectations only to the level that I already mentioned.”
Jafar Kazemi’s son joined the PMOI at Camp Ashraf two years ago.
Roudabeh Akbari reported that she visited her husband in prison last week. She claims that when she informed him that his situation was “critical”, her husband responded: “We do not realize in here until the last minute. They call you one day and keep you in solitary for one night and then execute you the following day.”
Nasim Ghanavi, Kazemi’s lawyer told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that her client participated in some post-election gatherings and probably chanted a few slogans but these activities do not justify the “enmity against God” charge since the majority of Shiite senior authorities will only brand an individual as “mohareb (enemy of God)” if that person takes up arms and Kazemi was not invoved with any weapons.
Jafar Kazemi was arrested in summer of 2009 in Haft-e Tir Square in Tehran and was kept in solitary confinement for 74 days before transfer to the section 305 of Evin Prison.
Last May, he was sentenced to death for the charge of enmity against God through collaboration and ties with PMOI and propagation against the regime. In December the sentenced was approved by the appellate court.
A surge in the number of executions in Iran in the past months has caused grave concern amongst human rights groups and the Campaign for Human Rights has addressed this trend by urging Iranian judiciary to issue a moratorium on all death sentences pending review by an independent judicial entity.
