On March 13, 2025, amid the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council, a conference was held at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva to address the deteriorating human rights situation in Iran, particularly the surge in executions. The event was attended by political figures, legal experts, former political prisoners, and relatives of executed individuals.
The speakers at the conference underscored the urgent need for the international community to adopt a firm policy toward the Iranian regime and hold its leaders accountable for the 1988 massacre of political prisoners and ongoing crimes against humanity.
The conference featured distinguished speakers, including:
- Kirsty Brimelow, former Chair of the Human Rights Committee of the Bar of England and Wales (2012–2018) and former President of the Criminal Bar Association of England and Wales (2022–2023).
- Claude Nicati, former Deputy Attorney General of Switzerland (2001–2009) and former President of the Neuchâtel Canton (2010–2011).
- Senator Roberto Rampi from Italy.
- Behzad Naziri, former journalist and a member of the National Council of Resistance on Iran (NCRI) Foreign Affairs Committee.
- Sahar Sanaii, women’s rights advocate.
- Behrooz Maqsoudi, a family member of executed political prisoners.
- Mojgan Joulaee, activist and event moderator.
1988 executions in Iran.
Part of my speech @UN_HRC
“The executions had already been decreed against those who did not renounce their political beliefs or hesitated in renouncing their beliefs.
There was a crude and cruel questionnaire. The person did not know that their… pic.twitter.com/oCoGso41te— Kirsty Brimelow KC (@Kirsty_Brimelow) March 14, 2025
Opening the event, Mojgan Joulaee highlighted the alarming increase in executions in Iran and the broader context of human rights violations. She emphasized the importance of international scrutiny and collective action to seek justice for victims and their families.
Kirsty Brimelow focused on the 1988 massacre, describing it as a systematic and widespread attack against civilians, resulting in the execution of approximately 30,000 political prisoners. She noted that these acts, which included arbitrary executions, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings, were conducted in violation of international human rights treaties to which Iran is a signatory.
Brimelow referenced documented reports, including findings from the UN Special Rapporteur, confirming the extrajudicial nature of these executions. She also highlighted the lack of accountability for those responsible, many of whom now hold high-ranking positions within the Iranian government. Brimelow called for the collection and preservation of evidence to ensure future trials for those implicated in these crimes.
Panel alarmant sur la peine de mort en #Iran ce jour à @ONUGeneve en marge de la session du Conseil des Droits de l’Homme #HRC58 avec les juristes @Kirsty_Brimelow & @CNicati et plusieurs témoins @SanaieSahar avec le soutien de @Francelibertes #StopExecutionsInIran pic.twitter.com/xiLvJRcSU7
— Behzad Naziri (@BehzadNaziri) March 13, 2025
Claude Nicati addressed the case of Dr. Kazem Rajavi, a prominent human rights defender and the NCRI Representative in Switzerland, assassinated in Geneva in 1990. He stressed that the failure to hold perpetrators accountable for past crimes has emboldened the regime to continue its execution policies. Nicati warned that without serious international intervention, the wave of executions, including recent cases of political prisoners Behrooz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani, will persist. He dismissed the Iranian regime’s claims of due process, describing the judiciary as a tool of repression rather than justice.
Sahar Sanaie focused on the regime’s systemic violence against women, emphasizing that Iran has one of the highest rates of female executions in the world. Despite this repression, Iranian women have played a leading role in the fight for freedom and democracy, as seen in the 2022 uprisings. Sanaii cited ongoing hunger strikes in Iran’s prisons as a form of protest against mass executions and government oppression. She reaffirmed the importance of international support for Iranian women fighting for their rights.
Senator Roberto Rampi from Italy condemned the Iranian regime’s practice of state hostage-taking, citing recent cases where Western nationals were detained to pressure governments into making concessions. He referenced the cases of Assadi, an Iranian diplomat convicted of terrorism in Belgium, and Hamid Noury, sentenced to life in Sweden for his role in the 1988 executions. Both were released in exchange for European hostages, setting a dangerous precedent for impunity. Rampi warned that Western leniency has emboldened the regime to continue its human rights violations and state-sponsored terrorism.
On March 16, 1993, we remember Mohammad Hossein Naghdi, former #Iran's Charge d'affaires to Italy who became the NCRI Representative in Rome, a truly brave soul of the Iranian Resistance, assassinated in Italy by agents of the oppressive Iranian regime. I spoke of him and Dr.… pic.twitter.com/aRAcdBagmm
— Hossein Abedini (@HoAbedini) March 14, 2025
Behrooz Maqsoudi shared his personal tragedy, recounting how three of his uncles were executed in the 1980s for their political beliefs. He stressed the importance of international advocacy efforts, such as the “No to Executions” campaign, which has gained traction inside Iranian prisons despite brutal crackdowns.
Behzad Naziri closed the conference by linking the 1988 massacre to the current wave of executions. He emphasized that the regime continues to use executions as a tool to suppress dissent, particularly targeting members of the opposition. Naziri urged the international community to renew the UN Special Rapporteur’s mandate and expand investigations into Iran’s human rights violations.
The speakers collectively called for stronger international measures, including diplomatic and legal actions, to hold Iran accountable for its human rights violations. They warned that without decisive global intervention, the Iranian regime would continue its policy of repression, executions, and political persecution.