Iran’s rights violations widespread and on rise

Iran’s human rights record has deteriorated to new lows under the regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, furthering a precipitous decline set into motion by the 1979 Islamic revolution, Nir Boms and Shayan Arya write in an op-ed in Monday’s Washington Times.

Boms and Arya detail a wide array of abuses, including executions of juveniles, religious persecution, and imprisonment of nonviolent political dissidents and rights activists. They note the case of Iraqi refugee and activist Hassan Abdul Hussein Tafah, who was sentenced to 15 years in an Iranian jail for attending an international conference that included discussion of human rights issues. They also call attention to a bill under consideration in the country’s parliament “that could result in the death penalty being used for those deemed to be promoting corruption, prostitution and apostasy on the Internet.”

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