Iran's Unjust Executions for "Insulting the Prophet"

In early May, the Islamic Republic executed two men on charges of “insulting the Prophet” and “insulting Islamic sanctities.” Carrying out executions for blasphemy are very rare in Iran, as previous cases saw the sentences reduced by authorities.

In 2002, the Iranian judiciary sentenced Hashem Aghajari, a university professor and historian, to death for apostasy for making a speech urging Iranians to "not blindly follow" Islamic clerics. Following a domestic and international outcry, his sentence was reduced in 2004 to five years in prison after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ordered a retrial.

Two decades later, the judiciary hanged two Iranians on the same charges after an opaque judicial process and amid a dramatic surge in executions.

Death penalty on charges of insulting Prophet Muhammad and Islamic sanctities is one of the hudud punishments that are mandatory under Islamic jurisprudence, and the legislators of the Islamic Republic consider them divine orders that cannot be disputed. However, many Shia clergymen believe that such punishment cannot be carried out during the “Absence” of the “Hidden Imam,” the Shia Messiah. Others believes that hudud are allowed only when all Islamic commands such as Islamic banking and Islamic education have been carried out. And, according to Khamenei himself, Iran has an Islamic government but society is not Islamic and not all Islamic commands are carried out.

Even the Islamic Penal Code of the Islamic Republic sets so many conditions for executing a defendant for insulting the Prophet or Islamic sanctities that it practically makes it impossible to hand down capital punishment on such charges.

The judiciary cited articles 262 and 513 of the Islamic Penal Code to charge the two men who were recently executed.

Article 262 states: “Anyone who swears at or insults the Great Prophet [of Islam] or any of the Great Prophets, shall be considered a Prophet-insulter and shall be sentenced to death. Note: Insulting, or swearing at, the [twelve Shia] Imams or the Holy Fatemeh [daughter of Prophet Mohammad] shall be regarded insulting the Prophet.”

And Article 513 states: “If considered a Prophet-insulter, any person who insults the sacred values of Islam or any of Great Prophets or the [twelve Shia] imams or the Holy Fatemeh shall be punishable by the death penalty; otherwise shall be sentenced to one to five years imprisonment.”

However, another article in the Islamic Penal Code affords the defendant a defense, and the judiciary has ignored this article.

According to a note attached to Article 263 of the Islamic Penal Code, “When a person insults the Prophet in a state of drunkenness, or anger or quoting someone else, if it is considered to be an insult, the offender shall be sentenced to a punishment of up to seventy-four lashes.”

The judiciary of the Islamic Republic says that the two accused ran Telegram channels where they insulted Islamic sanctities, but it conceded that they had removed these channels before they were arrested, meaning that they had become aware that they were committing a “sin.”

The two men were sentenced to death through an extremely opaque judicial process, and nothing has been reported about their defense. Assuming that they have had a chance to present a minimal defense, they must have argued that they committed the acts they were accused of out of ignorance and that they had no intention of committing blasphemy.

Therefore, sentencing them to death based on articles 262 and 513 and carrying out the executions was illegal and an example of extra-judicial executions. The court and the judiciary as a whole are abusing their power by bypassing the Islamic Republic's laws and by handing down illegal death sentences.

Source: iranwire.com, F. Davar, May 15, 2023

_____________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW US ON:

TELEGRAM

TWITTER

CONTACT: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

William Thompson Faces Execution in Florida Amid Dementia, Terminal Illness Concerns

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed an execution warrant for 74-year-old prisoner William “Bill” Thompson less than 24 hours after he was released from the hospital to the hospice wing of the prison. After his attorneys raised serious concerns about his mental competency and deteriorating physical health, Gov. DeSantis agreed to temporarily stay the execution so Mr. Thompson’s competency can be evaluated on October 1. If he is found competent, his execution remains scheduled for October 13.

Texas executes Ker’Sean Ramey

Texas executes man for a triple killing, days after other man convicted in case was put to death A man was executed Wednesday evening in Texas for a triple killing committed during an attempted robbery at a rural home, 1 week after the other man convicted in the case was put to death. Ker’Sean Ramey, 41, was pronounced dead at 6:34 p.m. CDT following a lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. He was the 6th person executed this year in Texas, with 3 more lethal injections scheduled in the state over the next 2 months.

Texas House chairman wants child rapists eligible for death penalty

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Under current Supreme Court precedent, states cannot execute someone for raping a child if the victim survives. That’s not stopping State Rep. Jeff Leach, R-McKinney. “We’re going to have a debate in this building behind me about the death penalty being on the table for any Texan who rapes a child,” Leach, the chair of the Texas House Committee on Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence, said. Leach made the comments while hosting a news conference supporting his client, abuse survivor Cindy Clemishire.

Israel | Ben Gvir discusses death penalty for Neveh Tzuf terrorist hours before Yom Kippur

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir raised the possibility of applying the death penalty to the Neveh Tzuf terrorist during a security meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Two hours before the start of Yom Kippur on Sunday, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir raised the possibility of applying the death penalty to the terrorist responsible for the attack in Neveh Tzuf during a security meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu had reportedly convened the meeting in response to the security situation in the West Bank following the Sunday terror attack.

Texas set to execute second man convicted in 2005 South Texas triple murder

Ker’Sean Olajuwa Ramey is scheduled to die Wednesday, one week after the state executed his co-defendant for the same killings. Texas is scheduled to execute a man on Wednesday for the 2005 shooting deaths of three people during a botched robbery in a small South Texas town, just one week after the state put his co-defendant to death for the same crime. Ker’Sean Olajuwa Ramey, 41, is scheduled to die by lethal injection Wednesday evening at the state penitentiary in Huntsville.

Tennessee Supreme Court denies stay for death row inmate Christa Pike

(TNND) — As Tennessee prepares for a Sept. 30 execution, the Tennessee Supreme Court has denied death row inmate Christa Gail Pike’s request to stop it. The court rejected Pike’s challenge to the state’s lethal-injection protocol, finding that her thrombocytosis diagnosis, a condition involving elevated blood platelets, did not show the execution would violate the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

Florida | Tomasz Kosowski found guilty of murder after representing himself in death penalty case

Tomasz Kosowski sat each day alone at the defense table, wearing orange jail garb and rubber sandals with socks. In a rare and largely unprecedented move for a death penalty case, Kosowski represented himself, waiving his right to a jury trial and allowing a judge in Pinellas County, Florida, to decide his fate. Prosecutors presented the state’s case over six days, laying out for the judge how the former plastic surgeon accosted Steven Cozzi in the bathroom of his law office on a Tuesday morning, and Cozzi was never seen again.

Philippines | President Marcos Grants Absolute Pardon to Mary Jane Veloso

President Marcos Confirms Decision to Grant Absolute Pardon to Mary Jane Veloso President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has signed an absolute pardon for Mary Jane Veloso after more than a decade. On Friday (September 25, 2026), the President confirmed the decision during a visit to Guiuan, Eastern Samar. According to him, the pardon was officially signed the previous day, marking a major development in the case.

Tennessee | Christa Pike Requests Clemency Ahead of September 30 Execution Date; Experts’ Amicus Brief Points to ‘Substantial Risk’ of Re-traumatization

Lawyers for Christa Pike, the only woman on Tennessee’s death row, filed a 226-page clemency petition with Governor Bill Lee, asking him to commute her death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole ahead of her September 30 execution date. Ms. Pike’s clemency petition outlines the case her team has built over decades of appeals: her actions at 18 years old cannot be separated from a childhood marked by repeated rape, sexual abuse, and neglect that went unaddressed by the adults and state systems meant to protect her. Once incarcerated, Ms. Pike was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Singapore | Ministry of Home Affairs refutes claims that death penalty was discussed during visit by Israel's security ministry

The Ministry of Home Affairs says discussions with the Israeli government involved the sharing of best practices in emergency response, crime prevention, and forensics. Issues relating to the death penalty “were never part of the meeting and were not discussed." SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday (Sep 11) refuted claims by an Israeli media outlet that the death penalty was discussed during a visit by an Israeli delegation in May. The Haaretz newspaper reported on Sep 7 that a delegation comprising representatives from the Israel Prison Service and National Security Ministry made a “secret visit” to Singapore that month.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog