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Japan | Hakamada found religion, but then felt under attack by ‘the devil’

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Editor's note: This is the last in a four-part series on letters that Iwao Hakamada wrote while on death row. About a decade after cursing God, Iwao Hakamada was baptized Catholic at the Tokyo Detention House on Dec. 24, 1984. “Since I have been given the Christian name Paul, I am keenly feeling that I should be aware of the greatness of Paul.” (June 1985)

Iran Sentences Another Political Prisoner to Death

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Mahmoud Mehrabi, a political prisoner held in Isfahan's Dastgerd Prison, has been sentenced to death for "corruption on Earth," a charge often used against dissidents.

On Saturday, his lawyer, Babak Farsani, reported that the court refused to provide a written verdict. 

Lawyers only learned details of his sentence by attending the issuing branch when judges read the text aloud.

In protest, Mehrabi's sister has threatened self-immolation outside a prominent official's residence.

Mehrabi, a Mobarakeh resident, was first arrested by the Revolutionary Guard in February 2023.

He was briefly released on bail in March 2023, but rearrested hours later. 

Human rights groups said he was tortured and denied medical treatment for a hernia.

Last year, Mehrabi faced 187 charges, including "corruption on Earth," issued by a local prosecutor's office.

Source: Iran Wire, Staff, May 6, 2024

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

— Oscar Wilde



Location: Iran
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