Europe Condemns Iran's Death Penalty: Swedish-Iranian Execution Renewed Calls for Human Rights Reforms

Shafaq News/ According to the Iranian Radio and Television Corporation (IRIB), Iranian authorities have executed a Swedish-Iranian individual, Habib Farajullah Shaab, who was convicted of leading an Arab separatist group responsible for various attacks, including a military parade attack in 2018 that resulted in the death of 25 people.

Shaab was sentenced to death for the "corruption on earth" crime, which is punishable by death under Iran's strict Islamic laws.

Last March, the Iranian judiciary confirmed the death sentence against Habib Shaab, who had been detained in Iran since 2020.

Sweden considered the punishment "inhumane." Tobias Billström, the Swedish foreign minister, condemned the death penalty, stating that it is an "inhumane punishment that cannot be justified."

He stated that Sweden and the rest of the European Union condemn its application in all circumstances.

Habib Shaab led the "Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz," an organization active in the Khuzestan Province of southwest Iran.

Iranian authorities consider the group a "terrorist" organization and hold it responsible for attacks, including a deadly explosion that claimed approximately 30 lives.

Shaab, who resided in Sweden, went missing in October 2020 after traveling to Istanbul. He reappeared after about a month, detained in Iran, as shown in a video broadcast on state television.

The trial of Habib Shaab began in January 2022, focusing on charges of terrorism, including "corruption on earth." In December of the same year, the Iranian judiciary announced his death sentence, as reported by local media.

Iran is known for having one of the highest rates of death penalty implementation globally. In 2022, the number of executions in Iran increased by 75 percent compared to the previous year, reaching at least 582 cases. This marks the highest number of recorded executions in Iran since 2015.

Human rights organizations have criticized the Iranian regime for using the death penalty as a tool of intimidation and repression to maintain its power.