Biden's incoming national security aide condemns Iran’s execution of journalist

Iran’s execution of dissident journalist Ruhollah Zam is a “horrifying human rights violation,” US President-elect Joe Biden's incoming national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a tweet on Sunday.

Zam’s execution has drawn international condemnation, including from rights groups and the European Union.

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“Iran’s execution of Ruhollah Zam, a journalist who was denied due process and sentenced for exercising his universal rights, is another horrifying human rights violation by the Iranian regime,” Sullivan said.

“We will join our partners in calling out and standing up to Iran’s abuses,” he added in the same tweet.

Also on Sunday, a Tehran-based business forum that aimed to promote trade between Europe and the Islamic Republic was postponed a day before it was set to start after several European envoys to Iran who were slated to speak at the forum announced their withdrawal over Zam’s execution.

In addition to European envoys, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell were also set to speak at the forum.

Zam, who Iran convicted of inciting violence during anti-government protests in late 2017, was executed on Saturday, state media reported. He ran Amadnews, a channel on popular messaging app Telegram which had over a million followers.

Iranian agents reportedly captured Zam during a visit to Iraq in 2019. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said at the time they had “trapped” Zam in a “complex operation using intelligence deception.”

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