July 28th marks the anniversary of the massacre of at least 30,000 political prisoners in Iran in the summer of 1988.
The clerical regime had been preparing for this massacre since the winter and spring of 1988 by relocating prisoners from one prison to the other.
On July 20, the authorities transferred a group of young women prisoners out of the Prison of Ilam (western Iran). They executed Farah Eslami, Hakimeh Rizvandi, Marzieh Rahmati, Nasrin Rajabi, and Jasoumeh Heydari on a hill in Shabab village in that province.
On the morning of July 28, however, a Death Commission was stationed in Evin Prison in Tehran. Within a few hours, hundreds of prisoners were hanged in Evin Prison. The Death Commission only asked a couple of questions and issued their death verdicts.
The same was simultaneously happening in all major prisons across the country. The massacre of political prisoners in Gohardasht Prison in Karaj started on July 30.
Thirty-six years later, on July 22, 2024, on the eve of this bloody anniversary, the UN Human Rights Center issued a statement in Geneva in which it announced that Professor Javaid Rehman, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in “Iran – in final findings before his mandate ends on 31 July – said that the “atrocity crimes” of summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions during 1981-1982 and in 1988 amounted to crimes against humanity of murder and extermination, as well as genocide. The executions included women – some reportedly raped before being executed – and many children. Crimes against humanity also included imprisonment, torture, and enforced disappearances.”
The Most Robust UN Report on 1988 massacre
The report is the most robust United Nations report in the past 40 years addressing, among other topics, the issue of genocide against the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). It concludes that what occurred was indeed genocide. The majority of the executions targeted the PMOI and individuals who remained steadfast in their beliefs.
The Special Rapporteur called for an independent international mechanism to ensure thorough investigations and accountability for serious crimes, including crimes against humanity, genocide, and sexual violence. This mechanism aims to gather and preserve evidence for future prosecutions and address atrocities committed against political opponents, religious minorities, and women and girls in Iran.
Prof. Rehman has also called “upon individual member states of the United Nations to make use of universal jurisdiction to investigate, issue arrest warrants against, and prosecute individuals for “atrocity crimes” – committed during the 1980s and in particular during 1981-1982 and in 1988 – including crimes against humanity as well as genocide and other serious human rights violations amounting to crimes under international law including torture, enforced disappearances and summary, arbitrary and extrajudicial executions.” (VIII. Conclusions and Recommendations, p. 62, Paragraph m.)
“The continued concealment of the fate of thousands of political opponents and the whereabouts of their remains amounts to the crime against humanity of enforced disappearance,” Prof. Rehman said in the press statement.
“I have observed the failure to ensure justice and accountability in Iran and how this is impacting the families of the victims and the current human rights situation in the country.” The Iranian government continues to deny the “atrocity crimes”, perpetrators have not been brought to justice.
“I repeat, there should be no impunity for such gross human rights violations, regardless of when they were committed. The Iranian regime and its leaders should not be allowed to escape the consequences of their crimes against humanity and genocide. An independent international investigative and accountability mechanism for Iran is absolutely essential,” Rehman said.
The 1988 Massacre
In Section A of Chapter V, “The 1988 Massacre and “Atrocity Crimes,” it is written in part:
In the aftermath of the government’s crackdown in 1981 and in subsequent years, tens of thousands of opponents of the Islamic Republic of Iran were arbitrarily imprisoned and tortured and thousands were subjected to arbitrary, summary and extra-judicial executions.
The 1988 Massacre in the Islamic Republic of Iran refers to the “systematic” and “widespread” attack on a civilian population resulting in mass murder, summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions as well as enforced disappearances of thousands of political prisoners between July–September 1988. Three and a half decades onwards – over 35 years – the enforced disappearances are continuing. An overwhelming majority of the executed prisoners were members and sympathisers of the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI), also known as the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), although hundreds of individuals belonging to leftist political groups and organisations were also forcibly disappeared and executed.
The 1988 massacre reportedly initiated following a fatwa (religious decree) by Iran’s then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini, although witnesses in their testimonies and many survivors of the massacre have informed the Special Rapporteur that the plan of execution of prisoners were afoot several months in advance of the massacre. The survivors and families of the victims have testified that towards the end of July 1988, prisons across Iran were placed in a lockdown and all communication was cut off and prison environment became abnormal. Televisions were taken away and newspapers were abruptly stopped.
Genocide
In section H of Chapter V, the UNSR report, we read, “The specific requirements of the Genocide Convention and the challenges related to establishing genocide have already been considered. Khomeini’s fatwa, a key document of the 1988 massacre, lays bare the genocidal intent in physically destroying the PMOI, which was treated as a religious group by the perpetrators.
The fatwa explicitly characterizes the PMOI’s alleged religious transgressions as “waging war against God” that must be punished by execution. Khomeini decreed “Since the treacherous monafeqin [PMOI] do not believe in Islam and whatever they say stems from their deception and hypocrisy, and since, as per the admissions of their leaders, they have deserted Islam, and since they wage war against God … it follows that those who remain steadfast in their position of nefaq in prisons throughout the country are considered to be mohareb [waging war against God] and are condemned to execution.”
“The religious rhetoric against the monafeqin is evident from the fatwa of Khomeini. (Geoffery) Robertson has noted, ‘The MKO were treated as a religious group by their persecutors: those who did not repent their ‘hypocrisy’ and repudiate their deviation were for that reason killed – for being ‘steadfast in their adherence to a corrupt version of Islam’.’ Unlawful, intentional killing was conducted, involving the murder of prisoners on political as well as religious grounds, subsequent to the fatwa from the Supreme Leader. The first phase of the mass executions was intended to exterminate all PMOI affiliated political prisoners. In the second wave, individuals belonging to leftist political organisations and atheist, or agnostic groups were targeted.”
In another part, Section H reads, “Thus focusing on the specific context of the 1988 massacre, the evidence presented to the Special Rapporteur establishes – in so far as the perpetrators and executions were concerned – a genocidal intent to physically destroy, in whole or in part, atheist or agnostic groups which the perpetrators understood and described as “apostates”: the inquisitorial process was focused on the religious beliefs of the prisoners and those claiming to be atheists or Marxists were executed. As noted in the earlier discussion, the Special Rapporteur is of the view that apostates, atheistic and agnostic groups fall under the protection of the Genocide Convention.
“The treatment of the PMOI as a religious as well as political opposition was established from the early days of the Islamic Revolution.”
Gender-based Crimes
In Section A of Chapter VI, “Marginalized Communities,” the UNSR points out, “As earlier noted, women and girls belonging to opposition groups were targeted, and many belonging to PMOI as well as to secular and leftist groups were summarily, arbitrarily, and extra-judicially executed throughout the 1980s.
Continuing impunity since 1979
In Section A of Chapter VII, “Impunity for Atrocity-Crimes,” it is written:
Ever since the 1979 Revolution in Iran, those who ordered and perpetuated the “atrocity crimes” of crimes against humanity as well as genocide, particularly during 1980–1981 and 1988 have remained in government. Many were rewarded for their role in their crimes and have been promoted to high positions in the government, the judiciary, and within the judicial and domestic executive of the country.
Conversely, those like the former Deputy Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, who was critical of the mass executions of 1988 were removed from office. After the death of the Ayatollah Khomeini, Montazeri was replaced by Ali Khamenei as the Supreme Leader. Ali Khamenei is alleged to have been involved in crimes against humanity during the 1980s. Montazeri was put under house arrest in 1997 after he questioned “the accountable rule exercised by the Supreme Leader”.
The magnitude and numbers of those involved in these crimes is enormous stretching from the Supreme Leader, the Sharia’s judges, the prosecutors, representative from the Ministry of Intelligence, members of the “death commission” and their facilitators; prison guards, members of the Revolutionary Guards and all those who facilitated the commission of these crimes in international law and their subsequent ongoing concealment.
The Special Rapporteur regrets to note that many of the individuals who are alleged to have committed serious crimes in international law remain in high-powered positions as of today. The former Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, acted as a member of the “Death Commission” in Tehran, and many witnesses in their testimonies made references to his role in the mass executions of 1988.
Notwithstanding his death in May 2024, it is important that international justice must prevail; his death must not result in the denial of the right to truth, justice and reparations for the Iranian people. Those who committed crimes against humanity and other crimes in international law during the 1980s and subsequently must be held accountable and impunity must end in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The Case of Maryam Akbari Monfared
In Section C, “Accountability mechanisms,” of Chapter VII, the UNSR brings up the case of political prisoner Maryam Akbari Monfared:
As mentioned above, in the prevailing environment it is impossible to seek any form of accountability at the domestic level for crimes committed during the 1980s. There are currently no avenues to seek truth and justice and no prospects of claiming reparations in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Indeed, those seeking accountability are frequently targeted, persecuted and punished. One poignant example illustrating this pattern of harassment and persecution is the case of Maryam Akbari-Monfared, a political prisoner in the country.
Ms. Akbari-Monfared displayed immense courage by filing an official complaint from inside prison on 15 October 2016, addressing the Iranian judiciary regarding the execution of her siblings during the 1988 massacre. In response to her pursuit of accountability, she has faced increased pressure while incarcerated, including the denial of visitations and her forced exile to a remote location, far from her children. Authorities have informed Ms. Akbari-Monfared that her release is contingent on retracting her call for accountability regarding her siblings’ murder. Despite enduring a 15-year sentence without a single day of furlough, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ms. Akbari-Monfared’s ordeal continues.
On 1 July 2023, she was summoned to the Courthouse of Evin Prison and arraigned on five new charges, subsequently receiving an additional two-year sentence. Information from sources within the prison suggests that her continued detention is aimed at coercing her into renouncing her pursuit of accountability.
The treatment of Maryam Akbari-Monfared serves as a stark illustration of the lengths to which Iranian authorities are willing to go to silence those seeking justice for the victims of the 1988 massacre and to suppress any calls for accountability with impunity.
Having regard to the impossibility of obtaining justice at the domestic level, there are possibilities of accountability at the international level or in a foreign state outside the jurisdiction of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Efforts to engage the International Criminal Court are unlikely to be unsuccessful.
Need for an independent international investigative and accountability mechanism
In Chapter VIII of the report, “Conclusions and Recommendations,” Professor Rehman said:
The Special Rapporteur seeks the establishment of an international accountability mechanism to ensure prompt, impartial, thorough and transparent criminal investigations inter alia of:
(a) the “atrocity crime” of crimes against humanity, committed against thousands of political opponents of the authorities, in particular their mass murder through summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions, and imprisonment, torture, rape and other sexual offences, other inhumane acts, as well as the enforced disappearances.
(b) the “atrocity crime” of genocide during the 1980s including in 1981–1982 and 1988 committed with perpetrator’s specific intent of killing, or physically or mentally harming members of groups perceived as apostates, non-believers, believing in deviant religions or beliefs or members of religious minorities.
(c) sexual and gender-based crimes against women and girls, including cases of reported rape and other sexual offences, as well as the repression and persecution of ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities during the first decade of the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Obligations of the International Community
The Special Rapporteur calls upon the international community to require the Iranian authorities to inter alia:
(a) disclose fully and publicly the truth regarding the mass enforced disappearances and summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions of 1981-1982 and July-September 1988, including the names of all the persons who have been executed, the cause and circumstances of their disappearances or their executions and the location of individual and mass graves containing the remains of the victims.
Tragic, as it is, solemn disclosures would also mean that appropriate death certificates (with accurate dates and details) of all those who have been executed must be issued.
(b) issue an official and public apology accepting state responsibility for the crimes committed during the 1980s and in particular during 1981-1982 and July-September 1988.
(c) stop the destruction and damaging of individual and mass grave sites that are suspected or known to contain the remains of the victims of the mass summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions of the 1980s including the June 1981-March 1982 massacre and the July-September 1988 massacre.
(d) provide the relatives of the victims all relevant information including the location of the graves and the remains. This information must include an honest and truthful explanation of what happened to their loved ones.
(e) initiate forensic investigations, with the help of independent, international forensics experts and following meaningful consultation with all affected communities to establish the number and identity of people buried in mass graves as part of a long-overdue thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the mass executions in Iran.
(f) ensure that identified bodies are returned to families for proper burial.
Need for the UN Security to Take Up the Case
Professor Javaid Rehman’s final report emphasizes the urgent need for the UN Security Council to address severe human rights violations in Iran—a demand long made by the Iranian Resistance.
The report highlights that many individuals involved in these violations remain in high positions within the regime, underscoring the necessity for the Security Council to pursue trials for key officials, including Ali Khamenei.
It criticizes ongoing negotiations with a regime implicated in crimes against humanity, noting that the international community’s inaction has allowed these atrocities to continue, as seen in the 2019 and 2022 massacres.
It is no longer justified to engage in negotiations with a regime involved in crimes against humanity and genocide. The international community’s inaction has allowed atrocities, such as the 2019 and 2022 massacres of protesters, to continue.