The Iranian flag flatters behind the fence of the Iranian embassy in Berlin, Germany, EPA
The Iranian flag flatters behind the fence of the Iranian embassy in Berlin, Germany, EPA
The Iranian flag flatters behind the fence of the Iranian embassy in Berlin, Germany, EPA
The Iranian flag flatters behind the fence of the Iranian embassy in Berlin, Germany, EPA

Rights group calls out Iran over Kurdish prisoner execution


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Iran has executed a Kurdish man for armed rebellion despite international pressure for his life to be spared, activists said on Monday.

Heidar Ghorbani's trial has been criticised as unfair with confessions allegedly obtained through force.

Ghorbani was executed on Sunday morning in Sanandaj prison in western Iran's Kurdistan province, the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights NGO said. Neither his family nor his lawyer had been informed, it said.

UN human rights experts had in September urged Iran to repeal his death sentence over “serious concerns” that he did not receive a fair trial and was tortured during pretrial detention.

Amnesty International had also called for his life to be spared, saying that there had been “numerous violations” in his trial, which it said was “grossly unfair".

Campaign groups say that Ghorbani was convicted and sentenced to death last year in connection with the 2016 killing of three men linked to the pro-government Basij militia. He had been jailed since October that year.

He was convicted of providing transport and logistical support for the killings. But the court verdict acknowledged he had never been armed.

  • An Iranian woman casts her vote in the first round of the presidential election at a polling station in Tehran on June 14, 2013. Iranians are voting to choose a new president in an election the reformists hope their sole candidate will win in the face of divided conservative ranks, four years after the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. AFP PHOTO/ATTA ATTA KENARE *** Local Caption *** 340797-01-08.jpg
    An Iranian woman casts her vote in the first round of the presidential election at a polling station in Tehran on June 14, 2013. Iranians are voting to choose a new president in an election the reformists hope their sole candidate will win in the face of divided conservative ranks, four years after the disputed re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. AFP PHOTO/ATTA ATTA KENARE *** Local Caption *** 340797-01-08.jpg
  • There is no clear front-runner among the six candidates trying to succeed the combative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose eight-year era is coming to an end because of rules blocking a run for a third consecutive term. But influential figures on all si???
    There is no clear front-runner among the six candidates trying to succeed the combative President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose eight-year era is coming to an end because of rules blocking a run for a third consecutive term. But influential figures on all si???
  • Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Iranians to participate in force in the vote, damning US officials who criticised the fairness of the election.. Seda Ravandi / AFP Photo
    Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Iranians to participate in force in the vote, damning US officials who criticised the fairness of the election.. Seda Ravandi / AFP Photo
  • Iran's security networks, meanwhile, have displayed their near-blanket control, ranging from swift crackdowns on any public dissent to cybercops blocking opposition Internet websites and social media . Behrouz Mehri / AFP Photo
    Iran's security networks, meanwhile, have displayed their near-blanket control, ranging from swift crackdowns on any public dissent to cybercops blocking opposition Internet websites and social media . Behrouz Mehri / AFP Photo
  • If no candidate wins an outright majority, a runoff pitting the two top finishers would take place June 21, so even a strong showing by Rowhani in Friday's voting could face another test. Results are expected early Saturday. Ebrahim Noroozi / AP Photo
    If no candidate wins an outright majority, a runoff pitting the two top finishers would take place June 21, so even a strong showing by Rowhani in Friday's voting could face another test. Results are expected early Saturday. Ebrahim Noroozi / AP Photo
  • A cleric fills in his ballot paper in a mosque in Qom. Mohammad Akhlagi / Reuters
    A cleric fills in his ballot paper in a mosque in Qom. Mohammad Akhlagi / Reuters
  • Rowhani's backers, such as former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani – who was blocked from running by Iran's ruling system – have urged reformists and others to cast ballots and abandon plans to boycott the election in protest over years of arrests a???
    Rowhani's backers, such as former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani – who was blocked from running by Iran's ruling system – have urged reformists and others to cast ballots and abandon plans to boycott the election in protest over years of arrests a???
  • Long lines snaked outside some voting stations in Tehran and elsewhere. The enthusiasm suggests an election that was once viewed as a pre-engineered victory for Iran's ruling establishment has become a chance for reform-minded voters re-exert their voices???
    Long lines snaked outside some voting stations in Tehran and elsewhere. The enthusiasm suggests an election that was once viewed as a pre-engineered victory for Iran's ruling establishment has become a chance for reform-minded voters re-exert their voices???
  • Iranian men show their documents as they vote in the first round of the presidential election at a polling station in Tehran. Atta Kenare / AFP Photo
    Iranian men show their documents as they vote in the first round of the presidential election at a polling station in Tehran. Atta Kenare / AFP Photo

Videos posted on social media showed crowds gathering on Sunday for a memorial ceremony for Ghorbani in his home town of Kamyaran in western Iran, chanting “martyrs don't die".

“Heidar Ghorbani was subjected to torture and sentenced to death without due process and any evidence against him,” said Iran Human Rights director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam.

“Heidar's death penalty is unlawful even under the Islamic republic's own laws.”

The group said his case was still with the Supreme Court and his relatives had not been warned in advance of the execution and merely pointed towards his grave after it was carried out, it said.

Amnesty International had also previously raised concerns about Ghorbani's appearance after his arrest in a so-called documentary broadcast in 2017 by Iran's state-run English language channel Press-TV about the killings.

Activists have repeatedly complained over Iranian state media's continued practice of broadcasting “confessions” from convicts under the guise of interviews, fearing that they were obtained through torture.

The specs: McLaren 600LT

Price, base: Dh914,000

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 600hp @ 7,500rpm

Torque: 620Nm @ 5,500rpm

Fuel economy 12.2.L / 100km

T20 World Cup Qualifier

Final: Netherlands beat PNG by seven wickets

Qualified teams

1. Netherlands
2. PNG
3. Ireland
4. Namibia
5. Scotland
6. Oman

T20 World Cup 2020, Australia

Group A: Sri Lanka, PNG, Ireland, Oman
Group B: Bangladesh, Netherlands, Namibia, Scotland

The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index

The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index

Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.

The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.

“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.

“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”

Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.

Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.

“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.

The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbo

Transmission: CVT

Power: 170bhp

Torque: 220Nm

Price: Dh98,900

The biog

Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia

Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins

Favourite dish: Grilled fish

Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.

Updated: December 20, 2021, 2:34 PM