8 December 2021
According to reports from human rights activists in Iran, Abbas Derris, an Arab political prisoner in Khuzestan province and the Al-Ahwaz region, is at risk of being executed. Authorities in Mahshahr (Ma’ashur) Prison have verbally informed his family of the death sentence and its implementation date. The judicial authorities have not officially communicated to his lawyer and family in writing. Abbas Derris could go to the gallows in an atmosphere of ambiguity and fear.
Abbas Derris (Shalishat) and his brother Mohsen Derris were arrested during the November 2019 protests in Mahshahr (Ma’ashur). During the nationwide protests in November 2019, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) opened fire on people in various cities in Iran, killing hundreds of protesters and arresting thousands. Mahshahr Reeds (Neyzar) in the outskirts of the town was the scene of a bloody massacre in which IRGC forces targeted defenseless and fleeing people with heavy artillery fire and killed nearly a hundred of them.
Based on forced confessions, Abbas Derris is sentenced to death and Mohsen Derris to life imprisonment. They are accused of shooting at the special forces of the provincial Revolutionary Guards and killing one of the officers. No evidence other than confessions under torture corroborates this charge. Security and judicial officials have previously prosecuted Afkari brothers in the same manner and executed Navid Afkari on similar charges. Mostafa Salehi, arrested in the December 2017 protests, was executed in the same way in 2020.
Abbas Derris is 48 years old, married, and has children. His wife suffered a stroke under stress and died this summer. Mohsen Derris is 29 years old. These two Arab citizens are targets of the regime's revenge on the Arab protesters, who have always been victims of ethnic, economic, and environmental discrimination in Khuzestan Province (Al-Ahwaz region). People are shown unarmed in all the available video clips about the Mahshahr (Mashour) event. Investigative reporters carefully verified the videos and clearly showed that none of the protesters were armed. The phrase "armed hooligans" is made by the propaganda machine of the Islamic Republic.
Judicial authorities intend to secretly execute Abbas Derris without informing his lawyer, without going through a legal and transparent court process, without announcing an official sentence to the prisoner and his family. It is as if the killing of Mahshahr (Ma’ashur) is still going on. We, the signatories of this petition, call on the Iran Supreme Court to overturn these unjust sentences. We call on the international human rights authorities to call the Islamic Republic to account for these rulings and do everything to secure the release of Abbas and Mohsen Derris.
Update, Wednesday, September 14, 2022 - The second hearing on the charges against Mr. Abbas Derris and Mohsen Derris was held in Mahshahr Prison in the presence of the head of the first branch of the Mahshahr Revolutionary Court and the advisor and representative of the prosecutor, and the last defense was heard.
Update, October 22, 2022 - Fereshteh Tabanian, the lawyer of Abbas and Mohsen Derris, announced that she was notified of the verdict of the Mahshahr Revolution Court branch, according to which Abbas Derris is sentenced to death on the charge of 'mohareba' (war against God).
عباس دریس را اعدام نکنید