Death sentences of Iranian opposition activists at appeal stage

PanARMENIAN.Net -
Iran hanged two people last week in connection with unrest that erupted after last year's disputed June presidential vote. The hangings were condemned by human rights groups and the West, which Iran accuses of backing the opposition.



The two were accused of being part of an anti-revolutionary group who had planned to plant bombs and assassinate officials to create tension in Iran on the day of the election and afterwards. Death sentences of the other nine are at appeal stage.



Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Musavi and Mehdi Karrubi, who also contested the vote, condemned the hangings, calling on their supporters to attend a rally on February 11, when the country marks the 31st anniversary of Iran's Islamic revolution.



Opposition websites have also been inviting people to stage fresh antigovernment rallies on February 11, when confrontations are expected to intensify, RFE/RL reported.



Iran's tenth presidential election was held on 12 June 2009, with incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad running against three challengers. The next morning the Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran's official news agency, announced that with two-thirds of the votes counted, Ahmadinejad had won the election with 62% of the votes cast, and that Mir-Hossein Mousavi had received 34% of the votes cast. The European Union, the United Kingdom the United States, and several western countries expressed concern over alleged irregularities during the vote, and many analysts and journalists from the United States, Europe and other western based media voiced doubts about the authenticity of the results.



Clashes broke out between police and groups protesting the election results from early morning on Saturday onward. Initially, the protests were largely peaceful. However, as time passed, they became increasingly violent. Some protesters began to get violent after the results of the election were announced. Angry crowds in Tehran broke into shops, tore down signs, and smashed windows. Civil unrest took place as protesters set fire to tyres outside the Interior Ministry building and others formed a human chain of around 300 people to close off a major Tehran street.



According to official data, 19 people died in protest rallies.