Iranian players sentenced to death for supporting women's protests

As the Iranian government arrested the former Iranian international in order to suppress the Iranian players’ protests against women’s rights, many current players and former players who participated in the protests in Iran were forced to compromise or be arrested under pressure and threats. Recently, the Iranian government released the most severe sentence for football players-the death penalty.

Iranian players sing national anthem at World Cup end for fear of political reprisals

Since September this year in Iran, because a 22-year-old woman, Martha Amini, refused to abide by the country's Islamic dress code, that is, the rule that women are required to wear headscarves, she was arrested by the police and "edified" in the process of being bizarre. The death, coupled with the long-standing deprivation of human rights for women, has sparked a number of anti-government protests across the country, including Iranian women and the general public, and has become the focus of global attention.

Due to the large-scale domestic protests and demonstrations triggered by Iran, the opening game of the World Cup in Qatar on November 21, Iranian players also chose to remain silent while singing the national anthem to support women's rights and protest the government's armed suppression of the people. attracted global attention.

After that, the Iranian government arrested the 35-year-old former Iranian national team player Velia Ghafuri a few days later. Under the coercion and pressure of the team, the players began to sing the national anthem with solemn expressions.

Azadani executed for solidarity and support of protests

The Iranian government has continued to carry out bloody suppression and used armed violence to quell protests. Recently, it was reported that the 26-year-old former Iranian player Amir Nasr Azadani was sentenced to death for supporting and participating in protests. This shocking news has been criticized by many. In addition to the fact that the national team players participating in this World Cup are likely to have not responded to this due to pressure from the government, many former and current Iranian players have called on the government to withdraw the sanctions against Hazard. Dani's death sentence.

The International Football Players Association publicly condemned

The International Football Players Association (FIFPro), which represents 650,000 professional football players, also immediately issued a statement criticizing the execution of Azadani by the Iranian government. and urged Iran to annul the verdict.

The Iranian government explained the verdict

However, the Iranian government also argued that Azadani was facing execution for the murder. According to the legal charges cited, Azadani participated in the armed riot protests on September 16, and that riot resulted in the shooting of three agents, including two police officers and a colonel. So the government accused Azadani of committing the death crime of being an enemy of Allah of the Islamic State with illegal organization, rebellion and sabotage of social security, and will be executed by hanging.

In addition, the Iranian embassy also emphasized that Azadani played for the Iranian professional football league team Tabriz Tractor from 2016 to 2018, but he has not participated in professional football since November 2017. He was fired by the team before the protests and is no longer an active player. It also reminds the United States and other Western forces not to use the identity of players to make a fuss in an attempt to mislead public opinion.

However, according to multiple reports, the family of the player Azadani has been coerced by the Islamic Defense and Armed Forces many times, that is, if he does not keep silent about foreign media, he will be threatened with death. In the video of Azadani's confession released by the Iranian media, it is obvious that the player has scars on his face. Iranian human rights organizations also revealed that Azadani was forced to plead guilty after being lynched.