Ahmed Shaheed Welcomes Release of Several Political Prisoners
2 October 2013
A UN human rights expert recently called the release of political prisoners in Iran “a step in the right direction,” and asked the Iranian government to release the other political prisoners as well.
Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported that Ahmed Shaheed, the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Iran said, “I ask the Iranian government to take more steps for the unconditional release of all political prisoners and implementing the promises Hassan Rouhani made during his elections campaign regarding removal of sources of censorship in the country.”
According to the UN Website, in a move that was welcome by Ban Ki Moon, UN Secretary General, and Navi Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Iranian government released several political prisoners, including Nasrin Sotoudeh.
Shaheed welcomed the Iranian government’s decision to release the political prisoners and called it “a step in the right direction for meeting Iran’s human rights obligations,” and asked the Iranian officials to release the other imprisoned lawyers and human rights activists.
