Simay Azadi– More than 300 international legal experts, former UN officials, Nobel laureates, judges, and human rights figures have signed an open letter to United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warning of what they describe as an escalating wave of executions and political repression in Iran. The letter, dated May 18, 2026, calls for urgent international action and greater accountability measures.
Among the signatories are former presidents of international courts and UN bodies, including Joachim Rücker, former President of the UN Human Rights Council; Sang-Hyun Song, former President of the International Criminal Court; Javaid Rehman, former UN Special Rapporteur on Iran; and Nobel Peace Prize laureates including Oleksandra Matviichuk and Jody Williams.
In the letter addressed to Guterres, the signatories wrote:
“We write to express grave concern over the accelerating use of the death penalty in Iran as an instrument of political repression.”
The letter states that, since regional hostilities began on February 28, 2026, Iranian authorities have allegedly intensified a campaign involving “mass arrests, torture, and state sanctioned killing” while also “cut[ting] off internet access for the general population.”
The signatories further warned:
“The scale of executions has reached levels not seen in nearly four decades.”
Referring to political prisoners, the letter says:
“At least eight political prisoners have been executed solely due to affiliation with the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI or MEK), while at least 11 others currently face execution on similar grounds.”
The statement also links recent executions to broader protest-related cases, noting:
“Others have been put to death for taking part in protests on charges such as baghi (‘armed rebellion’) after summary trials.”
The letter cites findings by the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, saying senior Iranian officials had encouraged harsher treatment of protesters. According to the document:
“The Prosecutor General declared that all protesters had committed moharebeh (‘enmity against God’), a capital offence, while the Head of the Judiciary instructed judges to show ‘no mercy’ in protest-related cases.”
The signatories also referenced estimates that more than 50,000 protesters have been arrested, according to the Fact-Finding Mission.
In one of the strongest passages of the letter, the experts argued that the current situation cannot be separated from earlier episodes in Iran’s history:
“This wave of executions cannot be separated from Iran’s long-standing culture of impunity, rooted in the 1988 massacre…”
The letter concludes by urging the United Nations and member states to press for an immediate halt to executions, release political prisoners, restore internet access, and consider international accountability mechanisms. The signatories warned:
“Silence in the face of these atrocities only reinforces impunity.”
The appeal comes amid recent statements by Iranian judiciary officials calling for faster implementation of sentences in security-related cases and after months marked by executions, internet restrictions, and mass arrests following unrest inside the country.