Iran: Kobra Najjar's stoning sentence has been converted into one hundred lashes.
She added: "In 1374 (1995) my client met Habib, a man whom her husband had brought home. Kobra confiding in Habib and confessing to him her problems, and afterwards, Habib killed Kobra's husband. Although he was sentenced to death, because the family of the husband gave their consent to receive blood money, Habib was released. Kobra N., however, was accused of serving as accomplice to murder, for which she was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment; and obstruction of justice by covering up facts on the murder case, for which she was sentenced to 3 years imprisonment. Furthermore, Kobra was also accused of adultery and sentenced to stoning. She has spent the last 11 years of her life in prison in Tabriz, serving her imprisonment sentence and awaiting execution of her stoning sentence. Despite repentance and request for amnesty, her requests have been denied three times by the Commission of Amnesty."
The closing part of the letter asks: "Is it fair for a mother, a victim of forced prostitution, who did everything she could to safeguard her children from harm, to be sentenced to stoning and to be deprived from seeing her children for 11 years? Considering the facts of her case , the evidence, and documents provided, it would be highly appreciated to reconsider if possible her crime and give her amnesty in order to end the nightmares of a woman who has spent the last 11 years in prison awaiting her death."
Last week, the Stop Stoning Campaign issued a statement expressing concern over the stoning verdicts of 10 cases, 8 of which were women. By removing Kobra's name from the list, we are now focusing on the nine remaining cases.
The Spokesman of the Judiciary, in a press conference last week, emphasized that during the first week of Day (last week of December) 3 men were stoned in a cemetery in Mash'had.
19 January, 2009
Source: www.meydaan.net/english
12/01/2009: During the last week of December, 3 men were stoned to death in Behesht Reza Cemetery in Mashhad for the crime of adultery. In July of this year, several women’s rights defenders, lawyers, and activist held a press conference announcing the names of nine women who were currently awaiting stoning sentences. Since then, spokesman for the Judiciary Alireza Jamshidi announced in August that the stoning sentences of four women (Layla G., Azar and Zohreh Kabiri, and Shomameh Malak Gharbani) would be commuted to whipping and imprisonment. However, Azar and Zohreh Kabiri has not been released yet and a retrial planned for January 12 which will judge whether they are guilty for adultery or not.
In addition, there are presently at least ten others locked up in several prisons around the country who are in danger of being stoned to death:
1. Kobra Najjar, imprisoned in Reja’i in the city of Karaj
2. Iran A., imprisoned in Sepidar Prison in Ahvaz
3. Kheirieh V., imprisoned in Sepidar Prison in Ahvaz
4. Ashraf Kalhori, imprisoned in Evin Prison—Tehran
5. Abdollah Farivar, imprisoned in Sari Prison
6. Ghilan Mohammadi, imprisoned in capital of Esfahan
7. Gholamali Eskendari, imprisoned in capital of Esfahan
8. Afsaneh R., imprisoned in In ‘Adel Abad Prison in Shiraz
9. The woman M.J., imprisoned in Vakil Abad Prison in Mashhad
10. The woman H. Imprisoned in Vakil Abad Prison in Mashhad
www.wluml.org/english/newsfulltxt.shtml?cmd[157]=x-157-563406
For more information on this and similar cases, see: The Global Campaign to Stop Killing and Stoning Women!
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