Prisoners in Iranian prisons entered the 17th week of hunger strikes as part of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” Campaign.
On Tuesday, May 21, 2024, prisoners continued their hunger strike for the 17th consecutive week.
In a statement, they condemned the mass executions carried out in May and asserted that ending the ruling religious dictatorship is the only solution to stopping the use of executions as a tool of repression.
- A Letter from Saeed Masouri, Political Prisoner in Ghezel Hesar Prison
- Raisi’s death and a smile of joy on the faces of bereaved mothers
—————–
Prisoners’ Statement on the 17th Week of the “No to Death Tuesdays” Hunger Strike
“On May 19, from 3 p.m. until 8 a.m. the next day, state television spent 18 hours in mourning, mourning and speculating over the rumored death of Raisi, the orchestrator of the 1988 massacre. They mourned publicly despite having no official confirmation — dragging out the spectacle while the public assumed he had died but awaited final confirmation.
Meanwhile, death row prisoners and their families remain in agonizing uncertainty, with execution nooses figuratively hanging around their necks for days or even weeks. This torment extends beyond the prisoners to their loved ones, who live in fear as the authorities prolong the suffering to complete their ‘assignments.’
In May alone, at least 122 individuals sentenced for non-political crimes—including six marginalized women—were put to death along with the suffering of their families. In addition, political prisoner Khosrow Besharat, executed at dawn on Wednesday, May 16, was forced to endure a 14-day period of waiting for his death, along with his family.
They did not stop there; they also increased pressure on the prisoners of Qezel-Hesar who were protesting the criminal executions on the 9th Tuesdays. As we were informed in Evin Prison, they transferred Mr. Ahmad Reza Haeri to solitary confinement for the same reason.
Every day, we witness the growing list of those sentenced to death, including Kamran Sheikheh, Mahmoud Mehrabi, Mojahed Kourkori, Abbas and Habib Driss, among others. In the latest rulings, we have seen the charge of “rebellion” issued against Vahid Bani Amerian. This former political prisoner has now been enduring intense pressure and torture for five months in ward 209 of the Ministry of Intelligence.
We, the striking prisoners on the “Tuesdays No to Execution” campaign, in Evin Prison (Wards 4, 6, and 8), Ghezel Hesar, Khorramabad, Markazi Karaj, Khoy, and Naqadeh, demand the abolition of violence and executions. We firmly believe that the only solution is to end the ruling religious tyranny.”
