Brussels, 18 July 2025 – The International Committee in Search of Justice (ISJ) has issued an urgent appeal to the highest authorities of the European Union, calling for immediate action to prevent a new wave of executions and escalating repression against political prisoners in Iran, particularly those affiliated with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
In a letter addressed to EU Commission and Council Presidents, EU High Representative, and European Parliament President, the ISJ warned of the imminent danger faced by political prisoners in Iran. The call comes in the wake of the Iranian judiciary’s sentencing, on 13 July of three political prisoners—Farshad Etemadi-Far, Masoud Jamei, and Alireza Mardasi—to double death sentences and imprisonment after two years of torture and solitary confinement, solely for their affiliation with the PMOI/MEK. Two other prisoners, Saman and Davood Hormat-Nejad, received lengthy prison terms on similar charges.
“These sentences are part of a broader campaign of domestic repression and revenge, with at least fifteen political prisoners now on death row for alleged links to the PMOI/MEK. Seven of these death sentences have already been upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court,” the ISJ’s letter stated. “They are being held in Iran’s most notorious prisons, with dozens more facing trial on similar grounds.”
The Case of Saeed Masouri: A Chilling Warning
The ISJ drew particular attention to the plight of Saeed Masouri, one of Iran’s longest-serving political prisoners, who has endured 25 years of incarceration without a single day of furlough. On July 16, Masouri was violently removed from his ward in Ghezel Hesar Prison and threatened with forced transfer to an unknown location. In a message smuggled from prison, Masouri warned: “This abduction is not about me alone—it is about silencing and isolating political prisoners, and preparing the ground for more executions, just as in 1988.”
His fellow prisoners echoed this alarm in a joint statement: “The regime views the people—not foreign powers—as its principal adversary. Arbitrary arrests, trumped-up charges, and the psychological and physical torture of political prisoners are part of a larger campaign of domestic repression.”
Regime Rhetoric Raises Fears of Repeat Massacres
The ISJ further notes that, emboldened by international silence, Iranian officials now openly justify renewed mass executions by invoking the 1988 massacre of political prisoners as a model. The regime’s official news agency, Fars News, recently declared it “time to repeat this successful historical experience.”
ISJ Urges EU to Lead International Response
In their appeal, the ISJ’s leaders—Professor Alejo Vidal-Quadras, Struan Stevenson, and Paulo Casaca—urge the European Union to take the following immediate actions:
1. Publicly condemn the death sentences and targeting of PMOI/MEK supporters.
2. Summon Iranian ambassadors to register strong protest and demand an immediate halt to executions.
3. Support the establishment of an independent UN fact-finding mission to investigate the status of political prisoners and ongoing human rights violations in Iran.
4. Impose targeted sanctions on judicial and prison officials involved in torture and unlawful sentencing.
5. End the silence and inaction that could cost innocent lives.
“This is a moment of truth for European leadership,” the ISJ concluded. “The EU must stand on the side of justice and fundamental rights and ensure history does not repeat itself on our watch.”
