Zürcher Nachrichten - UN rights council decries 'unprecedented' crackdown in Iran, deepens scrutiny

The 47-member body voiced alarm about "the unprecedented scale of the violent crackdown on peaceful protests by security forces" in Iran.

With 25 votes in favour, seven opposed and the rest abstaining, it decided to extend and broaden the mandate of independent investigators gathering evidence towards ensuring accountability for rights violations in the country.

"A climate of fear and systematic impunity cannot be tolerated," Iceland's ambassador Einar Gunnarsson said as he presented the text to the council before the vote. "Victims and survivors deserve truth, justice and accountability."

Stressing the need for "accountability", the adopted text extends the mandate of a special rapporteur on Iran for another year.

It also extended for two years the work of a separate fact-finding mission set up in November 2022, following Iran's crackdown on a wave of protests sparked by the death in custody of an Iranian Kurdish woman named Mahsa Amini.

The resolution empowers the investigative body to probe "allegations of recent and ongoing serious human rights violations and abuses, and crimes perpetrated in relation to the protests".

The vote came at the end of an urgent session of the rights council, requested by Britain, Germany, Iceland, Moldova and North Macedonia, but harshly criticised by Iran.

- 'Accountability' -

In his opening remarks to the council, UN rights chief Volker Turk described how security forces used "live ammunition" against protesters, decrying that "thousands" had been killed, including children.

"I call on the Iranian authorities to reconsider, to pull back, and to end their brutal repression, including summary trials and disproportionate sentences," he said.

"I call for the immediate release of all those arbitrarily detained by the Iranian authorities, and I call for a complete moratorium on the death penalty."

His comments were broadly echoed during the rights council special session.

"There must be accountability for the dire events of the past weeks, and justice must be done for all those who were killed, injured or detained only for exercising their human rights and for voicing legitimate demands," the European Union representative Michele Cervone d'Urso told the gathering.

Iranian ambassador Ali Bahreini however slammed Friday's meeting as "posturing" and "a pressure tool against Iran". His colleague Somayeh Karimdoost described the resolution as "a thoroughly unbalanced biased and politically motivated text".

A number of countries also came to Iran's defence, accusing the council of being "politicised" and showing "double standards".

Cuban ambassador Rodolfo Benitez slammed the session as an "act of supreme cynicism", while China's ambassador Jia Guide said Beijing "opposed interference in other countries' internal affairs on the pretext of human rights".

- 'Chilling' -

Turk's office and NGOs tracking the toll from the crackdown on the biggest protests in Iran in years have said their task has been impeded by a now two-week internet shutdown.

Giving their first official toll from the protests, Iranian authorities on Wednesday said 3,117 people had been killed since the massive demonstrations erupted late December.

But the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency on Friday put the number of deaths at more than 5,000, warning the confirmed figures were likely to be far lower than the actual toll.

Another NGO, Norway-based Iran Human Rights, has warned the final toll risks reaching the scale of 25,000.

The protests have now largely halted, but while "the killing in the streets of Iran may have subsided... the brutality continues", Turk warned.

"I am deeply concerned by contradictory statements from the Iranian authorities about whether those detained in connection with the protests may be executed," Turk said.

He pointed out that Iran "remains among the top executioner states in the world", with at least 1,500 people reportedly executed there last year.

A.P.Huber--NZN