After all that sucking up to the Iranians, they now expect to wield influence..?
German gov’t to Post: Do not execute champion Iranian wrestler
Germany’s federal government “rejects the death penalty under all circumstances.”
There are growing fears expressed by Iranian human rights activists on Saturday that the Islamic Republic may immediately execute the decorated wrestler Navid Afkari after the authorities placed him in solitary confinement.
Germany’s foreign ministry told The Jerusalem Post on Saturday that Iran’s regime should not execute Afkari.
“The federal government rejects the death penalty under all circumstances and regardless of the crime,” the foreign ministry wrote, adding that “The federal foreign office therefore appeals to Iran in talks to refrain from the practice of execution, to ensure fair and constitutional procedures and addresses this in particular with the imposition and execution of the death penalty against minors, with which Iran violates international obligations.”‘
Germany has now become the second western government to publically urge Iran’s rulers not to execute Afkari, 27, who was handed two death penalty sentences over the murder of a security guard for a water company during protests in Shiraz.’
Afkari participated in nation-wide protests in 2019 against the Iranian regime’s economic and political corruption.
He said he was subjected to torture to confess to the murder. Iran’s regime frequently imposes brutal torture methods on protestors to confess to crimes that they did not carry out.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday urged Iran to overturn the death sentences passed down on Afkari.
“To the leaders of Iran, I would greatly appreciate if you would spare this young man’s life, and not execute him,” Trump tweeted on Thursday.
The Iranian journalist and human rights activist Masih Alinejad wrote to her over 202,000 followers “URGENT” in tweet, declaring “Navid Afkari has now been taken to solitary confinement and his family has no news of his situation. They’re worried about the fact that the authorities might be preparing his execution. Dear free world: please help us save his life. He is innocent.”
