07 June 2024 :
June 6, 2024 - IRAN. Hatem Özdemir appeals death sentence to higher Iranian court
Hatem Özdemir, a member of People Defense Forces (HPG), a Kurdish group, was sentenced by an Iranian court to death after being captured in 2019 in the Maku district of Eastern Kurdistan, appealed to a higher court.
Özdemir was ambushed and taken prisoner in the rural area of Maku, in Urmia (Eastern Kurdistan) on 2 July 2019.
After 33 months of captivity, Hatem Özdemir was brought to the Revolutionary Court in the city of Xoy and was sentenced to death on 15 March 2022, after a short show trial. The sentence was approved by the top court about 2 weeks ago.
Hatem Özdemir's father, Abdurrahman Özdemir, who lives in Agirî, said that he met with his son in prison on 30 May.
Father Özdemir said that the lawyer appealed to a higher court against the death sentence and added: "This decision was made just because my son is a Kurd, and it is an arbitrary decision. We do not accept it. Even though it is the 21st century, people are still executed. My son was given the death penalty. The world remains silent against the executions in Iran. This is unacceptable. I don't see enough support in the world against the death penalty given to my son."
