Transcript [00:00] Hey everybody. [00:02] Well, all of our attention regarding [00:04] Iran is on the geopolitics, [00:08] the military side, all of that. We have [00:10] talked a little bit about the uh about [00:13] the possibility that there will be [00:14] protests and what the future is for the [00:16] Iranian people, but in this video I want [00:18] to focus on a topic that is not getting [00:20] enough attention. [00:21] And uh it needs to uh morally, [00:24] ethically, we need to talk about it more [00:26] and that is the horrible abuses [00:30] uh of the Iranian regime against its [00:32] people that are ongoing. [00:34] And uh specifically the executions that [00:37] are taking place [00:39] on uh on pretty much a daily basis and [00:42] uh the situation with that is getting [00:44] worse [00:45] and I feel it is uh [00:47] it is a moral imperative to use my [00:50] voice, to use this channel to give more [00:53] attention to this very important topic. [00:55] So, [00:56] uh please [00:57] I'm going to ask you at the beginning of [00:59] this video this time, please share this [01:01] video as widely as you can [01:03] because uh this is an aspect of what's [01:05] going on in Iran [01:07] that um that the world needs to pay more [01:09] attention to. And thankfully, in the [01:11] last couple of days, it looks like uh [01:13] somewhat the world is, [01:16] but this needs to become a central [01:17] narrative in the war and part of and [01:20] part of everything. So, let's get into [01:21] it. [01:22] Let's uh talk about what's actually [01:23] going on. So, here's a headline [01:27] uh and this is from today um [01:30] well, from Saturday. Iran executes two [01:32] prisoners as courts issue [01:34] protest-related death sentences. Iran [01:36] has carried out the executions of two [01:37] prisoners convicted of murder while [01:40] issuing and upholding several death [01:42] sentences against individuals arrested [01:44] during the nationwide protest that began [01:46] in late 2025, according to reports by [01:49] the Human Rights Activists News Agency. [01:51] Meanwhile, prisoners at Ghezel Hesar [01:53] Prison have continued a hunger strike in [01:56] protest against the implementation of [01:57] death sentences. Separately, branch five [02:00] of the revolutionary court in Isfahan [02:03] sentenced 22-year-old rapper Manam Navab [02:07] Safavi to death on a charge of [02:10] Moharebeh. Moharebeh is [02:13] enmity against God. That was his crime. [02:17] Safavi, who was arrested during the [02:19] January 2026 nationwide protest, was [02:21] accused of involvement in the [02:22] destruction of public property, [02:23] propaganda against the regime, [02:26] assembly and collusion against national [02:28] security, and encouraging people to [02:30] commit murder. [02:32] A source close to his family said one of [02:33] the allegations against him was writing [02:36] protest slogans. [02:38] Uh and then we had an announcement a [02:40] couple of days ago by the United [02:41] Nations, which is never [02:43] uh a bastion of uh of moral clarity, but [02:46] on July 23rd, just a couple days ago, [02:48] independent UN human rights [02:49] investigators Thursday called for Iran [02:52] to immediately halt the execution of 10 [02:54] men who took part in a protest in the [02:56] central city of Isfahan earlier this [02:58] year, warning that some of their [03:00] relatives have already been called for [03:02] final visits. [03:03] The appeal by the independent [03:05] international fact-finding mission on [03:06] Iran follows the July 19th execution of [03:09] two other men in the same case, Efron [03:13] Esfandiari, reportedly 18 years old, and [03:15] Golmohammad Mohammadi, a 23-year-old [03:17] Afghan national, which it strongly [03:20] condemned. [03:21] The mission was concerned that the [03:22] Iranian authorities are fast-tracking [03:24] capital punishment cases against the [03:26] protests and national security issues. [03:29] Members point to a July 15th [03:31] announcement by Tehran Prosecutor [03:33] General Ali Salehi [03:35] following a directive from the head of [03:36] the judiciary, Gholamhossein [03:38] Mohseni-Ejei, to expedite proceedings. [03:42] In other words, they are [03:44] expediting the cases so that they can [03:46] move to quicker [03:48] uh [03:49] executions. [03:51] And there's some suspicion that this has [03:53] a lot to do with the acceleration of the [03:55] war with the escalation that's going on [03:57] now that the Iranian regime wants to [03:59] you know, is worried about the people [04:01] rising up so they want to execute as [04:03] many of these dissidents as they can. [04:06] Right now, EU sanctions Iranian judges [04:08] amid mounting concerns over executions. [04:10] So we saw the UN and now we see the EU [04:12] stepping up. This is an a headline also [04:14] from Saturday. As Tehran intensifies its [04:17] domestic crackdown, the EU will continue [04:19] to hold those responsible to account. [04:22] Said uh Kaja Kallas, Kaja her name. [04:26] The European Union imposed fresh [04:27] sanctions on five Iranian judges and the [04:29] founder of a cyber group accused of [04:32] helping Tehran suppress information on [04:34] Friday. That's a couple days ago. [04:37] Stepping up pressure on the Islamic [04:38] Republic as rights groups warned of a [04:40] looming surge in executions [04:43] following the collapse of the US-Iran [04:45] ceasefire. EU and foreign policy chief [04:47] Kaja Kallas said the new measures [04:49] targeted individuals allegedly [04:51] responsible for human rights violations [04:53] as Iranian authorities intensified their [04:55] domestic crackdown. Quote, "As Tehran [04:58] intensifies its domestic crackdown, the [05:00] EU will continue to hold those [05:01] responsible to account." Kallas said in [05:04] a post on X. [05:05] The latest measures bring the total [05:07] number of people and entities sanctioned [05:09] by the European Union over Iran's human [05:11] rights record to 269 individuals and 53 [05:14] organizations. The sanctions come as [05:16] international human rights organizations [05:18] warned that Tehran could sharply [05:20] increase the executions of political [05:23] prisoners and protesters following the [05:25] collapse of the ceasefire between the [05:27] United States and Iran and the [05:28] resumption of hostilities. That's what [05:29] they're worried about. Cuz with the [05:31] resumption of hostilities and the [05:32] further destabilization of the regime, [05:35] the regime uh [05:36] uh you know, they're [05:38] they want to [05:40] um [05:41] intensify the reign of [05:42] the reign of terror on the people, make [05:45] the imminence of death if you are a [05:46] protester more uh more present [05:50] and and and discourage people [05:53] from coming out into the streets. I mean [05:55] this is and and also you know kill as [05:57] many of these of these dissidents as [05:59] they can while they're under fire. [06:01] Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam director of the [06:03] Norway based group Iran Human Rights [06:06] said the renewed conflict risk providing [06:08] the authorities with cover to accelerate [06:11] executions. Quote with the collapse of [06:13] the ceasefire and the resumption of the [06:15] war we're deeply concerned that the [06:17] authorities will exploit the situation [06:19] to intensify the execution of political [06:21] prisoners he said. The organization said [06:23] hundreds of political prisoners [06:25] and protesters currently face charges [06:27] that carry the death penalty with around [06:29] a hundred already sentenced to death. [06:32] Iran Human Rights has repeatedly urged [06:34] the international community to take to [06:36] place Iran's use of capital punishment [06:38] at the center of any negotiations with [06:40] Tehran. [06:42] The international community the European [06:43] Union in particular must make the [06:45] immediate suspension of executions a [06:47] central issue in any negotiations [06:49] Amiry-Moghaddam said. Listen I'm not for [06:51] negotiations but this is a very [06:52] important point and we haven't talked [06:54] about it enough. [06:55] That [06:56] this should be part of you know like [06:59] when they talk about whenever you hear [07:00] Trump or Rubio or whoever [07:02] or or the mediators anyone who's talking [07:04] about the demands being made [07:07] on Iran [07:08] the the halting the executions of [07:12] political prisoners has to be at the top [07:13] of the list. We need to raise a voice [07:15] for these people. We need to speak out [07:17] for it and that's why I'm making this [07:19] video. [07:20] Um in terms of Iran's reaction to the EU [07:24] you know cuz the Iranians like to play [07:25] the game of getting the UN and the EU to [07:28] come to their aid which sadly tragically [07:31] they often do but here now we see the [07:33] United Nations and the EU both [07:36] calling out Iran now. You might say oh [07:39] big deal it's just words. You're right [07:40] these are not these are not [07:42] organizations that we look to really for [07:44] moral clarity, but it is a good sign. [07:47] It's a good sign that the narrative on [07:49] this is being is being elevated and that [07:52] these organizations, the EU and the UN, [07:55] are speaking up about this that this is [07:58] This is becoming more of an issue. [07:59] That's good. We should We should amplify [08:01] that. That's why I'm asking you, share [08:03] this video. We need to amplify this [08:05] issue. [08:06] Okay. Baghaei. So, Baghaei is, of [08:09] course, the foreign ministry spokesman. [08:11] This guy with the glasses. Baghaei, EU's [08:13] claim of concern for Iranian human [08:15] rights is pure hypocrisy. [08:17] Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, [08:19] Esmaeil Baghaei, has forcefully rejected [08:21] claims of human rights concerns raised [08:23] by European officials, describing the [08:25] stance of the the EU as outright [08:27] hypocrisy in response to recent [08:28] statements made by Kaja Kallas, [08:31] the EU High Representative for Foreign [08:33] Affairs and Security Policy. Baghaei [08:34] remarked, "Kaja Kallas speaks of the [08:37] European Union's human rights concerns [08:38] regarding Iran." He added, "How can a [08:41] professed commitment to human rights be [08:42] so easily reconciled with providing [08:45] logistical and technical support for [08:46] lethal aggressions against the Iranian [08:48] people, aggressions that deliberately [08:50] target civilians and critical national [08:52] infrastructure, all while refusing to [08:54] condemn even the most blatant war crimes [08:56] and offering not a single word of [08:58] sympathy for the Iranian children [08:59] slaughtered by American-Israeli bombs [09:01] and missiles enabled by the EU's own [09:04] logistical and technical support. This [09:06] is not merely a loss of credibility. It [09:08] is the banality of evil and the purest [09:10] form of hypocrisy," Baghaei concluded. [09:12] Now, why did I read this to you? [09:16] Not Not only because it's absurd, [09:19] but because [09:20] it shows that the Iranians are rattled [09:23] by this. [09:25] You see, like I said before, the [09:27] Iranians like to highlight when some [09:30] French diplomats say something positive [09:32] or that maybe, you know, that they're [09:34] always trying to make it seem that [09:35] they're in better relations with the [09:36] world community and they still uh have [09:40] this kind of legitimacy in the UN and in [09:44] that kind of international community [09:45] arena. And the fact that there usually [09:48] when they get criticized [09:49] internationally, they don't even mention [09:51] it. It doesn't even like they just [09:53] ignore it. They pretend it didn't [09:54] happen. [09:56] Um and the fact that they're doing an [09:58] article that they're putting out an [09:59] article pushing back on it means that I [10:01] think they're a little bit rattled by [10:03] it, which is good. But again, that's [10:06] their reaction and now let's take a look [10:07] at some more details [10:09] about what's going on. Uh this is from [10:11] Article 19. Article 19 is a is a free [10:14] speech human rights group [10:16] and they put this out on Friday. Iran [10:18] crackdown on human rights intensifies [10:20] with surge in executions. I just want to [10:22] read you a few excerpts here. Article 19 [10:24] condemns the recent surge in executions [10:26] across Iran. In June alone, [10:29] in June alone, 109 individuals, [10:32] including three women, were executed. A [10:34] 10% increase from the same time last [10:36] year. Since the outbreak of conflict [10:39] with Israel and the United States, more [10:40] than 50 individuals have reportedly been [10:42] executed on charges related to the [10:44] January protests, raising serious [10:46] concerns that the regime is exploiting [10:48] the conflict to justify the executions [10:50] and spread fear among the Iranian [10:52] population and that the death [10:53] [clears throat] penalty is being used as [10:54] a tool of political repression. At least [10:57] five individuals were executed last [10:59] month on political charges, including [11:00] espionage, following their detainment [11:02] during the January protests. Three men, [11:05] Ashkan Maleki, Mehdad Mohammadi, [11:08] Mohammadi, [11:10] and Arman Morafati were tried in a joint [11:13] case [11:14] charged with Moharebeh, enmity against [11:17] God. [11:18] That's the charge, being enemies of God. [11:22] And were sentenced to death. Human [11:24] rights organizations report that [11:25] security forces used torture to elicit [11:28] the confessions upon which sentences [11:29] were determined and the individuals, [11:32] which means that the confessions were [11:33] worthless, and the individuals were [11:35] prevented from appointing their own [11:36] legal counsel. Ashkan Maleki and Mehrdad [11:39] Mohammadinia were executed on June 1st [11:41] in Karaj, while the current status of [11:44] Arman Morovati is unknown. [11:46] Ahad Shokriyan, a flower market worker [11:49] in Tehran, received three death [11:51] sentences on the on July 23rd. That's [11:54] just last week. [11:55] for his participation in the [11:56] demonstrations. Meaning this is ongoing. [11:58] While everything else is going on with [11:59] Iran and the potential negotiations and [12:02] the bombing, they are still moving [12:04] forward at a at a at a swift pace, [12:08] trying, convicting, and executing [12:11] protesters and and uh [12:15] and and citizens of Iran. These charges [12:17] were handed down despite Shokriyan being [12:19] only one of several defendants in the [12:21] case, and after an official forensic [12:24] media um [12:25] a medical report indicated that his [12:27] severe asthma would have prevented him [12:29] from performing the actions claimed by [12:30] the security forces. [12:32] The escalating use of executions [12:33] reflects the Iranian authorities' [12:35] broader effort to silence dissent [12:38] through arbitrary detention, torture, [12:40] enforced disappearances, coerced [12:42] confessions, and unfair trials. The [12:45] recent directive issued by Iran's [12:47] Ministry of Intelligence under Article 4 [12:48] of the law on intensifying punishment [12:51] for espionage and cooperation with the [12:52] Zionist regime and hostile states, there [12:54] is such a law, [12:56] significantly expanded the scope for [12:58] imposing severe punishments, including [13:00] the death penalty, on individuals [13:02] accused of vaguely defined national [13:04] security offenses, [13:06] heightening our concerns. And this is [13:09] from uh from earlier on Saturday. [13:13] Is Iran using the war to accelerate [13:14] executions and silence dissent? As [13:17] international attention remains fixed on [13:19] the US on the Iran-US war [13:21] and regional escalation, human rights [13:23] advocates say Tehran is intensifying [13:25] another campaign largely outside the [13:27] global spotlight, the execution of [13:29] protesters. The bombs are making noise [13:31] and the world is looking at Iran, but [13:33] what about the silence that is killing [13:35] innocent people every day? Azadeh [13:38] Afsahi, founder of Iran House, told Iran [13:40] International's Eye for Iran podcast. [13:43] Rights groups say the war did not create [13:44] the crackdown, but has provided [13:46] political cover for the Islamic Republic [13:48] to fast-track death sentences, conceal [13:51] executions from families, and intimidate [13:54] a population already traumatized by the [13:56] violent suppression of nationwide [13:57] protests in January. Rights groups [14:00] estimate that around 100 political [14:01] prisoners and protesters have received [14:03] death sentences, while hundreds more [14:05] face capital charges. More than 70 [14:07] people are awaiting execution in the [14:10] Daskerd prison in the central city of [14:12] Isfahan, according to Iran Human Rights. [14:15] Uh and then it mentions Article 19 that [14:17] we just read the we just read uh we just [14:20] read from Article 19. [14:23] Shaheen Milani, executive director of [14:25] the Iran Human Rights Documentation [14:27] Center, said the regime views internal [14:28] rebellion as a greater threat to its [14:31] survival than the prospect of [14:33] large-scale foreign invasion. This is [14:35] what I've been saying. [14:37] And that is why I believe that even the [14:40] military [14:41] uh actions that are being taken are [14:43] directed at the wrong place. If the [14:45] Americans would start directing their [14:47] military activities at decapitation of [14:50] leadership [14:51] and at IRGC sites. Bomb the prisons that [14:55] these people are in. [14:57] Meaning uh [14:58] do what the Israelis started doing back [15:00] in the in the 12-day war, where they [15:01] started bombing the entrance to prisons [15:03] and prisons [15:04] to allow prisoners to escape. Bomb the [15:06] IRGC headquarters. [15:09] Bomb the checkpoints where the Basij and [15:11] the IRGC guys are. [15:13] Decapitate these judges. [15:15] Get them assassinated. These are the [15:17] types of things that would actually [15:19] empower the Iranian people and [15:20] destabilize the regime. I'm going to [15:22] read that again. The most serious [15:26] The Islamic Republic may fear its own [15:28] population more [15:30] than US military action. [15:34] The Islamic Republic may fear its own [15:36] population more than US military action. [15:38] This is what I've been saying. The most [15:39] serious threat they face is from [15:41] internal rebellion. This is from the [15:43] Iranian people bringing the regime down. [15:45] Milani said, "The severity of the [15:47] January crackdown demonstrated how [15:49] seriously they thought the Israelis [15:51] viewed the threat. They set a new [15:52] standard in their own regime for [15:54] brutality." The executions, Milani [15:56] argued, are intended both to frighten [15:58] the wider population and demonstrate [16:00] strength to regime supporters who might [16:02] otherwise consider defecting. See, this [16:05] is why stopping what we were doing, what [16:08] the Israelis were doing in the last 2 [16:10] weeks of March and the first week of [16:11] April, in the last 3 weeks of the 40 [16:14] days of of bombing that started on [16:16] February 28th, what the Israelis were [16:18] doing, attacking the Basij, attacking [16:20] the IRGC, was causing defections. And it [16:24] was we were we were getting really close [16:26] to the regime collapsing, and that's [16:28] been reversed. All of this bombing of [16:30] bridges and bombing of military [16:32] installations, everything the Americans [16:34] are doing, while they're doing it, [16:36] internally the regime is consolidating. [16:38] They're killing more protesters, they're [16:40] bringing in more Shiite militias from [16:43] other countries who are willing to kill [16:44] Iranian protesters, they're cracking [16:46] down on people, they're executing people [16:49] to instill more terror. They're actually [16:51] strengthening their regime. [16:53] Remember, their goal is to stay in [16:55] power. [17:01] Afshari said, [17:03] I'm sorry, let's let's finish this. He [17:05] said that he said they may delay further [17:08] unrest, but can meaning the executions [17:10] can delay further unrest, but cannot [17:13] resolve the economic hardship and and [17:15] discontent driving opposition to the [17:17] government. Quote, you cannot kill your [17:19] way out of economic misery and [17:21] discontent, he said, predicting renewed [17:23] demonstrations could emerge within [17:26] months or years. Af- Afsahi said the [17:28] crackdown has deepened depression and [17:30] trauma among survivors and victims' [17:33] families [17:34] with international attention, while [17:36] international attention remains [17:37] concentrated on the military conflict. [17:39] Everybody cares about the bombs, but [17:41] nobody cares about the hanging that is [17:42] happening every day. [17:45] She said. Despite that trauma, Afsahi [17:48] said that many survivors remain prepared [17:50] to protest again. [17:51] They're just waiting, she said. They're [17:53] ready for that next ignition to be able [17:55] to go out again. [17:56] Iranian prisoners have also begun [17:58] challenging the execution campaign from [18:00] inside the country. About 1,500 [18:02] prisoners sentenced to death for [18:04] drug-related offenses in unit two of the [18:07] Ghezel Hesar prison have staged a hunger [18:10] strike and a sit-in since July 13th. The [18:12] protest began after six inmates were [18:14] transferred to solitary confinement [18:18] in preparation for execution. The [18:20] protest has added a rare form of [18:21] resistance from inside Iran's prisons to [18:24] the growing international campaign [18:25] against the executions, according to the [18:27] advocates interviewed by I for Iran. [18:31] They said the executions may demonstrate [18:32] the regime's capacity for repression, [18:34] but they also reveal its fear that the [18:36] anger driving Iran's protest movement [18:39] remains unresolved. The war may have [18:41] pushed the movement out of the [18:42] headlines, it has not, they warned, [18:44] eliminated it. [18:46] And finally, let's take a look at some [18:48] recent [18:49] uh positive signs from Trump on this [18:51] issue. Trump calls Iranian officials [18:53] savages after latest executions of [18:54] protesters. President Donald Trump [18:56] condemned Iran's leadership, and this is [18:59] from last week, after the execution of [19:01] two protesters over the weekend, calling [19:03] officials savages amid a widening [19:05] crackdown on dissent during the war with [19:08] the United States. [19:10] And then it mentions we've mentioned [19:11] these two before as Esfandiari [19:13] Esfandiari and Mohammadi. Trump reposted [19:16] several messages on his Truth Social [19:17] platform about the executions of Arfan [19:22] Arfan Esfandiari and Golmohammad [19:24] Mohammadi including one where he [19:26] reposted a message about Mohammadi's [19:28] execution while adding the latest one of [19:30] 52,000 plus innocent protesters savages. [19:35] In another post on July 21st Trump [19:37] shared a message featuring a photograph [19:39] of Esfandiari alongside the alongside [19:41] the appeal please help please be their [19:43] voice. And he shared this. He also [19:46] reposted an image of a woman crying in [19:48] front of in front of a burning Iranian [19:50] flag while holding a sign reading don't [19:52] kill us. A day earlier Trump had also [19:55] reposted a Truth Social message by [19:57] Iranian journalist and activist Masih [20:00] Alinejad calling attention to [20:02] Esfandiari's execution. [20:04] So these are good signs. If Trump is [20:06] starting to is repost is posting things. [20:08] Remember when Trump posts things that's [20:10] not just off the cuff. He's posting in [20:13] the space of two days he he it says here [20:15] he reposted and posted a few times [20:19] about this issue. So maybe it is [20:23] coming to the fore a little bit more on [20:25] in in terms of Trump's priorities about [20:28] where we're going with this war but we [20:29] need to elevate this. We need to this [20:31] needs to become a central narrative of [20:33] what's going on in the world when we [20:34] talk about Iran and I'm going to be [20:36] trying to cover it as much as possible. [20:39] And please please share this video with [20:42] as many people as you can because this [20:44] is a story that we owe it to the victims [20:48] and we owe it to the Iranian people to [20:50] elevate this narrative in the context of [20:53] this war. God bless.
