February 27, 2018–A young man who was
incarcerated at 15 years of age was sentenced to death in Iran upon
turning 18—despite the provincial state medical examiner’s report that
Mohammad Kalhor was not mentally mature when he allegedly committed
murder.
The Center for Human Rights in Iran
(CHRI) has also learned that the Supreme Court threw out Kalhor’s
initial three-year prison sentence and ordered a new trial resulting in a
death sentence after a deputy education minister and an influential
member of Iran’s Parliament asked the court to “look after” the victim’s
family.
“The case of Mohammad Kalhor is
extremely concerning because Iran has yet again issued a death sentence
to a person who was convicted as a juvenile in violation of
international and UN standards,” said Hadi Ghaemi, CHRI’s executive
director, “It also highlights the Iranian Judiciary’s lack of
independence.”
According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Convention on the Rights of the Child,
it is illegal to execute someone for crimes committed under the age of
eighteen. Iran is party to both treaties but remains one among a handful
of countries still putting juveniles to death.
Case Highlights Violations of Domestic and International Law and Judiciary’s Lack of Independence
