Man claiming to be God hanged: report
Latest Update: Tuesday1/2/2011February, 2011
Agencies/Tehran
Iran has executed a man who claimed he was God, after he was found guilty of heresy and corruption, the official Fars news agency reported yesterday.
Abdulreza Gharabat—who was hanged last Wednesday in Ahvaz, southwest Iran—was the 67th person to be executed since January 1, according to a tally based on Iranian media reports.
“He had long claimed to be God and had succeeded in gathering around him young Arabs from Khuzestan province,” which has a large Arab minority, Fars reported.
Given the current rate of around two a day, the number of hangings in Iran is set to exceed the 179 publicly announced in 2010.
In 2009, the last year for which complete statistics are available, Iran executed 388 people, according to international human rights groups, making it second only to China in the number of people it put to death.
On Saturday, Iran hanged an Iranian-born naturalised Dutch woman, Sarah Bahrami, 46, on drugs charges. She was reportedly arrested in December 2009 after joining an anti-government protest while visiting relatives.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief yesterday condemned the hanging of the Dutch-Iranian citizen.
“I firmly condemn the execution,” Catherine Ashton said in a statement.
“I am dismayed that the Iranian authorities denied consular access to Ms Bahrami and did not ensure a transparent and fair judicial process,” the EU High Representative added.
Ashton had already expressed concern last week at the “alarming rate” at which Iran is executing prisoners.
“I call on Iran to halt all pending executions immediately and to declare a moratorium on the use of the death penalty,” she said yesterday.
Latest Update: Tuesday1/2/2011February, 2011
Agencies/Tehran
Iran has executed a man who claimed he was God, after he was found guilty of heresy and corruption, the official Fars news agency reported yesterday.
Abdulreza Gharabat—who was hanged last Wednesday in Ahvaz, southwest Iran—was the 67th person to be executed since January 1, according to a tally based on Iranian media reports.
“He had long claimed to be God and had succeeded in gathering around him young Arabs from Khuzestan province,” which has a large Arab minority, Fars reported.
Given the current rate of around two a day, the number of hangings in Iran is set to exceed the 179 publicly announced in 2010.
In 2009, the last year for which complete statistics are available, Iran executed 388 people, according to international human rights groups, making it second only to China in the number of people it put to death.
On Saturday, Iran hanged an Iranian-born naturalised Dutch woman, Sarah Bahrami, 46, on drugs charges. She was reportedly arrested in December 2009 after joining an anti-government protest while visiting relatives.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief yesterday condemned the hanging of the Dutch-Iranian citizen.
“I firmly condemn the execution,” Catherine Ashton said in a statement.
“I am dismayed that the Iranian authorities denied consular access to Ms Bahrami and did not ensure a transparent and fair judicial process,” the EU High Representative added.
Ashton had already expressed concern last week at the “alarming rate” at which Iran is executing prisoners.
“I call on Iran to halt all pending executions immediately and to declare a moratorium on the use of the death penalty,” she said yesterday.
