Iran Human Rights Calls for Strong EU Reaction to Dual-national Jamshid Sharmahd’s Death Sentence

Kidnapping dissidents from neighbouring countries is becoming common practice. Iran Human Rights previously warned that “Failure by the international community to respond adequately to these unlawful acts will lead to its normalisation.”

Reiterating that there are no fair trial standards in the Islamic Republic and that the interrogation process is based on torture-tainted confessions, Iran Human Rights calls on the international community to intervene to save Jamshid Sharmahd’s life and prevent further abduction of dissidents.

Jamshid Sharmahd is a German-Iranian dissident activist who was kidnapped on a layover in Dubai when flying to the United States, his country of residence, from India. He last spoke to his wife on 28 July 2020. On 1 August, Minister of Intelligence and Security Mahmoud Alavi announced on state television that Jamshid Sharmahd had been arrested “following a complex operation” and aired a video of him stating his name while blindfolded with a black cloth. Charges related to a 2010 Mosque bombing, for which three men had already been executed, were brought against him.

 After being held in pre-trial detention for over a year and a half, his first hearing was held on 6 February 2022. Presided by Judge Salavati, a “hanging judge” on the US sanctions list, Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court held multiple hearings on the accusations of “efsad- fil-arz by planning and directing terrorist acts”, including the 2010 bombing. He was sentenced to death today. Jamshid has been held in solitary confinement since his arrest and denied legal representation, due process and the right to a fair trial.

Kidnapping dissidents from neighbouring countries is becoming common practice. Iran Human Rights previously warned that “Failure by the international community to respond adequately to these unlawful acts will lead to its normalisation.”

Arresting political dissidents outside of Iran is not unprecedented. Ruhollah Zam, the director of Amad News Telegram channel, was arrested in Iraq in October 2019  and transported to Iran. He was executed on 12 December 2020. Iranian-Swedish dissident, Habib Chaab was also kidnapped from Turkey in October 2020 and tried for corruption charges. He’s currently awaiting sentencing.