Iran executes Ahwazi Arab activists accused of enmity against God

Iranian authorities have informed the families of four Ahwazi Arab political activists of their execution in the past few days, the organization Iran Human Rights reported on Thursday.

Ghazi al-Abbasi, Abedelreda Amir Khanfara, Abedelamir Mejdami and Jassem Muqaddam hailed from the town of al-Falahiya.

The authorities have not yet handed their bodies to their families.

The Iranian judiciary had accused the activists of enmity against God, and of threatening national security by establishing the Liberals Battalion in Falahiya.

In a letter from prison, the activists said after three years of torture and detention, the trial - which lasted one hour - sentenced them to execution, and did not grant them a chance to defend themselves or choose lawyers.

The activists said they were not interrogated about establishing the battalion, adding that they were surprised when the court made that accusation.

Ahwazi Arabs, one of Iran’s many minorities, are mostly Shiite Muslims, like the majority of people in the country.

They live mainly in the oil-rich south-western province of Khuzestan, and often complain of marginalization and discrimination.

In January, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton called on Iran to halt the execution of Ahwazi Arab activists.

Last week, Iranian TV broadcast the confessions of three Ahwazi activists who await the death sentence. Their names are Ali Gebyshat, Yassine al-Moussawi and Salman Chayan.

Tehran denies accusations by Ahwazi Arabs that it is trying to eradicate their Arab identity.