The Islamic regime in Tehran accused Habib Chaab of being the leader of an Arab separatist group.
A Swedish-Iranian dissident sentenced to death has been executed in Iran. The death sentence against Habib Chaab, “the leader of the terrorist group Harakat al-Nidal”, was carried out on Saturday morning, according to the Misan justice website. Chaab has been detained in Iran since October 2020 after disappearing during a trip to Turkey and being tried in Tehran a month later.
On December 6, Chaab was found guilty of forming and leading a rebel group called Harakat al-Nidal (Arab Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz) and “corruption in the land”, which carries the death penalty in the Islamic Republic of Iran. As head of Harakat al-Nidal, he planned and carried out “numerous terrorist operations in Khuzestan province”, the verdict said. In March, the country’s Supreme Court upheld the verdict.
A large Arab minority lives in the oil-rich province of Khuzestan, and its members have long complained of marginalization. Ahwas is the capital of the province in the northeast of the Persian Gulf.
Stockholm condemned the sentence as “inhuman” and sought to provide Chaab with consular support. However, as Iran does not recognize dual citizenship, Sweden was denied access to the detainee.
16 Western citizen arrested
At least 16 Westerners are currently being held in Iran. Most of them also have Iranian citizenship. In January, Iran caused international outrage with the execution of former British-Iranian politician Alireza Akbari, who had been convicted of alleged espionage. In late April, Iran’s Supreme Court upheld the death penalty against Iranian-German Jamshid Sharmahd.
(APA/AFP)