Thirty female political prisoners in Iran — including the daughter of a former president — demanded an end to the execution of protesters in the country on Sunday.
Four people have already been put to death and at least 109 others are facing execution in protest-related cases, said NGO Iran Human Rights. At least 481 people have been killed in the crackdown, it said.
The prisoners said they had been sentenced to a total of 124 years in prison through “unfair and non-transparent procedures”.
They said the combined sentence was “worth a few generations of human life”.
“We, the political and ideological prisoners in the women's ward of Evin Prison, demand an end to the execution of protesters and an end to unjust sentences of prisoners in Iran,” they said in a petition.
“We have come together to say no to execution. We defend people's right to live in justice.”
French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah, who was arrested in June 2019 on the charge of undermining national security and sentenced to five years in prison, is among those who signed the petition. Ms Adelkhah's family has strongly denied the allegations.
They also include former human rights activist Faezeh Hashemi, daughter of former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who was given a five-year sentence in January for “collusion against the security of the country”, and Niloufar Bayani, a former representative of the UN Environment Programme in Iran who was handed 10 years in jail in 2020 for “conspiring with America as a hostile government”.
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Protesters holds Iran's former flag on the Trocadero Esplanade Trocadero Esplanade during an event to display the slogan "Woman. Life. Freedom. " on the Eiffel Tower, in a show of support to the Iranian people, in the wake of the death of young Iranian woman Masha Amini who died in the country's morality police custody, in Paris, on January 16, 2023. AFP -
The Eiffel Tower lits the night with the a slogans "Woman, Life, Freedom" and "Stop Executions in Iran in support for the protests across Iran in Paris, Monday, January 16, 2023. AP -
The Eiffel Tower lits the night with the a slogans "Stop Executions in Iran" and "Woman, Life, Freedom" in support for the protests across Iran in Paris, Monday, January 16, 2023. AP -
Iran's former flag flies next to the Eiffel Tower displaying the slogan #StopExecutionsInIran in support of the Iranian people, in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
The Eiffel Tower displays the words 'Woman, Life, Freedom' in support of the Iranian people, in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
A protester holds a sign reading 'condemned for loving' during a display of the words '#StopExecutionsInIran' on the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
A woman holds a sign reading 'Woman, Life, Freedom' prior to a display of the words 'Woman, Life, Freedom' on the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
The Eiffel Tower displays the words 'Woman, Life, Freedom' in support of the Iranian people, in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
The Eiffel Tower displays the words 'Woman, Life, Freedom' in support of the Iranian people, in Paris, France, 16 January 2023. EPA -
The Eiffel Tower lits the night with the a slogans "Stop Executions in Iran" and "Woman, Life, Freedom" in support for the protests across Iran in Paris, Monday, January 16, 2023. AP -
The Eiffel Tower lits the night with the a slogans "Woman, Life, Freedom" and "Stop Executions in Iran in support for the protests across Iran in Paris, Monday, January 16, 2023, as a Iranian flag flies next. AP -
A protester holds a slogan reading in French " Stop the executions in Iran" during a gathering to display the slogan "Woman. Life. Freedom. " on the Eiffel Tower, in a show of support to the Iranian people, in the wake of the death of young Iranian woman Masha Amini who died in the country's morality police custody, in Paris, on January 16, 2023. AFP
The movement has spread as far as the US film industry, with movies by and about Iranian women featuring at the Sundance Film Festival at the weekend.
Diaspora filmmakers at the ceremony spoke about the female-led protests and the deadly challenges of censorship and resistance in their home country.
Iran erupted into protests in September after Mahsa Amini, 22, who was arrested for wearing her hijab “inappropriately”, died while in custody.
The protesters “are literally putting themselves on the line. I stand in support with them 100 per cent,” said filmmaker Sierra Urich. Ms Urich's directorial Joonam is about a three-generation family of Iranian women living in the US and The Persian Version is a colourful, candid comedy-drama which hops between Iran and New York over several decades. Both films received world premieres on Saturday.
Over the last two days, Iranian authorities have arrested three female journalists, Iranian media said on Monday.
Authorities say hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed and thousands arrested during what they label as "riots" incited by the "enemies" of the government.
"In the past 48 hours, at least three female journalists, namely Melika Hashemi, Saideh Shafiei and Mehrnoush Zarei, have been arrested in Tehran," reformist newspaper Etemad quoted the Tehran journalists' union as saying.
The paper said the three women had been transferred to Evin prison where many of those arrested in connection with the protests are being held.
It estimated that about 80 journalists have been arrested since the start of the protests in the country four months ago.
No details were given on the reasons for the latest arrests.
Ms Shafiei is a freelance journalist and novelist, while Ms Zarei writes for various reformist publications and Ms Hashemi works for an outlet named Shahr, according to local media reports.
In late October, more than 300 Iranian journalists signed a statement criticising the authorities for "arresting colleagues and stripping them of their civil rights", local media had said at the time.
AFP contributed to this report
