Kidnapped Iranian-German dissident Jamshid Sharmahd Executed; IHRNGO Calls for Strong International Reaction

Oct. 28, 2024, 5:22 p.m.

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); October 28, 2024: Jamshid Sharmahd, a German-Iranian citizen kidnapped by Islamic Republic forces from the UAE in 2020, was executed at an undisclosed location.

Iran Human Rights condemns Jamshid Sharmahd’s execution and calls for a strong reaction by the international community to his execution and the wave of executions in Iran.

IHRNGO Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “The execution of Jamshid Sharmahd is a case of extrajudicial killing of a hostage aimed at covering up the recent failures of the hostage-takers of the Islamic Republic. Jamshid Sharmahd was kidnapped in the United Arab Emirates and unlawfully transferred to Iran, where he was sentenced to death without a fair trial by the Revolutionary Court. The entire process, including his arrest, conviction, and execution, constitutes a serious violation of international law. The international community must condemn the extrajudicial killing of Jamshid Sharmahd in the strongest possible terms.”

According to the judiciary’s Mizan news agency, Jamshid Sharmahd was executed at an undisclosed location on 28 October after his sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court. He was sentenced to death for charges of “efsad- fil-arz (corruption on earth) by planning and directing terrorist acts” in February 2023.

Jamshid Sharmahd was 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 2008 Mosque bombing, for which five 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 public hearings on the accusations of “efsad- fil-arz by planning and directing terrorist acts”, including the 2010 bombing. He was sentenced to death on 21 February 2023. Jamshid was held in solitary confinement following his arrest and denied legal representation, due process and the right to a fair trial. The confirmation of his sentence by the Supreme Court was announced by authorities on 26 April 2023.

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 executed on 6 May 2023.