The clerical regime’s Chief of Police threatened those who called for a boycott of boycott of Iran’s presidential elections.
Referring to those who call on people not to vote, Hossein Ashtari threatened “election norm breakers” and said they would be dealt with.
In a meeting with religious singers or “Maddahs”, Ashtari said: “The (Supreme) Leader of the revolution cited everything in his meeting with members of parliament and determined everyone’s duty. The Police and the Judiciary will deal with anyone who transgresses according to the law.”
Iran’s Chief of Police also told Iranians they were “free to choose whoever they wanted” in the presidential vote. The seven candidates that Iranians are “free” to choose from are all hardliners who are fiercely loyal to Ali Khamenei. Among them is Chief Justice Ebrahim Raisi, who many believe will be Iran’s next president. Apart from his recent human rights violations as Chief Justice, he is known for his direct role in the execution of thousands of political prisoners in the late 1980s.
An unprecedented number of people have been calling for a boycott of the upcoming June 18 Iran election 2021 in the past months.
The European Union applied sanctions against Hossein Ashtari and 34 individuals for violating human rights.
Hossein Ashtari has been the Commander in Chief of the Iranian police force since March 2015 and is a member of the National Security Council. The police force includes the Emdad Units and the Special Units. Iran’s ordinary police force, the Emdad Units and the Special Units used lethal force to suppress the November 2019 protests in Iran, causing the deaths of and injuries to unarmed protesters and other civilians in many cities across the country. As a member of the National Security Council, Hossein Ashtari took part in the sessions that resulted in the orders to use lethal force to suppress the November 2019 protests. Hossein Ashtari therefore bears responsibility for serious human rights violations in Iran.
The United States blacklisted Hossein Ashtari last year for his role in the suppression of Iranian protesters.
