“Iran’s execution of Ruhollah Zam, a journalist who was denied due process and sentenced for exercising his universal rights, is another horrifying human rights violation by the Iranian regime. We will join our partners in calling out and standing up to Iran’s abuses,” tweeted Jake Sullivan, who took part in the negotiations of the Iran nuclear deal under the administration of Barack Obama.
Zam, 47, who edited a popular Persian news website Amadnews from France, was a staunch opponent of the Iranian establishment. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) accused him of fomenting unrest during the 2017 widespread protest in the country through social media and in particular the messaging app Telegram, a popular platform in Iran.
The opposition figure was charged by a court in June for “corruption on earth,” a capital crime that carries a mandatory death sentence. The charge is often used to prosecute those accused of espionage or attempts to overthrow Iran’s government.
The late journalist’s death has prompted outrage across the globe. Following the European Union’s condemnation of Zam’s Saturday execution, Iran summoned the French and German envoys to Tehran.
In late 2019, Zam was abducted from Iraq by IRGC intelligence operatives and returned to Iran.
He was one of several people targeted in operations in recent years aimed at “repatriating” Iranian dissidents from abroad.
In a separate case in late October, Habib Chaab, an exiled opposition leader from the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Al Ahwaz, was detained in Turkey and handed over to Iran. The dissident’s capture was highly publicized as an example of the strength of Iran’s intelligence services.
