by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – United Nations investigators contend in a new report that Iran has perpetrated “crimes against humanity” in attacking ethnic and religious minorities amid its crackdown on women’s rights protests, Christian Today reports.
The ongoing protests in Iran erupted in September 2022 following the death in police custody of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini who had been arrested for breaking hijab rules.
Iran’s government reacted to the protests with brutal crackdowns, including the execution of protestors.
A UN fact-finding mission to Iran now reports that the Iranian government has targeted Kurd and Baluch ethnic and religious minorities with “crimes against humanity” in dealing with anti-regime protests, Christian Today reports.
The abuses include murder, extrajudicial executions, unnecessary use of lethal force, arbitrary arrests, torture, rape, enforced disappearances and gender persecution.
Calling on the international community to hold the Islamic regime to account, Henrietta Blyth, CEO of the charity Open Doors UK & Ireland, said in a statement: “The recent UN paper starkly illustrates the severe and targeted repression faced by religious minorities in Iran. These findings resonate deeply with the plight of Christians in the region, who continue to endure intensified persecution for their faith.”
“Open Doors stands in solidarity with all those suffering under these injustices. We urge the international community to take immediate action to protect these vulnerable populations and uphold their fundamental human rights,” Blyth added.
Iran has been ruled by a brutally intolerant Islamic regime since 1979; the country’s current Supreme Leader is Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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