Execution of Kurdish Religious Prisoner Davud Abdullahi at Ghezel Hesar Prison Following Six-Day Hunger Strike

Hengaw: Tuesday, January 2, 2024

The death sentence of Davud Abdullahi, a Kurdish religious prisoner hailing from Mahabad, has been carried out at Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj after 14 years of imprisonment. Last month witnessed the execution of Qasim Abeste and Ayoub Karimi, two co-accused in this case, while the four remaining defendants currently detained are now facing the imminent threat of execution.

According to a report received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, at dawn on Tuesday, January 2, 2024, Davud Abdullahi’s death sentence was executed in Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj. Along with his transfer to solitary confinement, he had been on a hunger strike for six days.

 It is noteworthy that Ayoub Karimi's death sentence was executed at dawn on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, and Qasim Abaste's death sentence was executed on Sunday, November 5, 2023, both occurring at Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj.
Strongly condemning the execution of Davud Abdullahi, Hengaw Organization for Human Rights asserts that his sentencing by the judicial system of the Islamic Republic of Iran was marked by a lack of transparency, unfairness, and illegality.

Branch 28 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, under the leadership of Judge Moqiseh, handed down sentences to Davud Abdullahi, Ayoub Karimi, Qasim Abasteh (who have been executed), and four other defendants—Farhad Salimi, Anwar Khezri, Khsraw Besharat, and Kamaran Shekha. The charges against them in the murder case of "Abdul Rahim Tina" included "action against national security," "propaganda against the regime," "membership in Salafi groups," and "corruption on earth." 
Davud Abdullahi, Farhad Salimi, Anwar Khezri, Qasim Abeste, Khsraw Besharat, Kamaran Shekha, and Ayoub Karimi were apprehended on December 7, 2009, by security forces and were subsequently transferred to the intelligence agency detention center in Urmia City.

The session for the accusations against these 7 Kurdish religious prisoners took place at March 2015, with the mentioned sentences officially communicated to them on May 25, 2016.

It's noteworthy that the verdict was overturned by the 41st branch of the Iranian Supreme Court, headed by Judge Razini, in 2017. An appeal was made to the 15th branch of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran, where, in June 2017, Davud Abdullahi and six other co-accused were again sentenced to death by Judge Abolqasem Salvati.

This verdict was confirmed by the 41st branch of the Iranian Supreme Court with repeated pressure from the Iranian Intelligence Department in Urmia. On Monday, March 4, 2020, it was officially communicated to Mahmoud Walizadeh Tabatabai, the lawyer representing these seven Kurdish religious prisoners.

These seven individuals were initially incarcerated in Gohardasht prison and were later transferred to Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj on August 1, 2023, following the evacuation of Gohardasht prison.