“Iran Executes Separatist Leader Amidst Civil Unrest”
Habib Ferecullah Cab, the leader of the Arab Struggle for the Liberation of Ahvaz Movement, also known as the Nidal Movement, has been sentenced to death by the Judiciary in Iran for “connecting with foreign intelligence services and making mischief on earth,” according to a news report by affiliated Mizan News Agency. The group is responsible for several “terror and bloody acts,” resulting in the death of over 450 Iranian citizens.
In March, the Supreme Court upheld Cab’s death sentence, and the appeal against the decision remains open. Along with Cab, Muin Hanferi, Habib Deris, Adnan Gabişavi, and Salim Musavi, along with Nidal Movement executives, Ali Müceddem, and Muhammed Rıza Mukaddem, were sentenced to death for their alleged involvement in armed actions against security forces in 2018-2019.
The Nidal Movement, which demands autonomy for the Arab-dominated province of Khuzestan in Iran, owns an Arabic-language television channel called “Ahvazuna.” The organization is alleged to have carried out the attack on a military parade during Iran-Iraq war commemoration activities in Ahvaz in September 2018, resulting in the death of 25 people and injuring 60.
Habib Ferecullah Cab was captured by Iranian forces in 2020, leading to his conviction. The ongoing appeal raises questions about the use of the death penalty in Iran and the country’s human rights record.
