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On the anniversary of the 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in Iran
The 1988 massacre of over 30,000 political prisoners in Iran
has been described as the worst crime against humanity since World War II.
28 years after this genocide, the Iranian regime still refuses to acknowledge the executions, or provide any information as to how many prisoners were killed.
Based on eyewitness accounts of survivors, the massacre had been prepared for from at least a year before. The order for the massacre came from Khomeini directly in the form of a religious decree (fatwa), calling for the execution of all who remained steadfast in their support for the opposition People's Mojahedin of Iran
A so-called Amnesty Commission (better known among prisoners as the Death Commission) asked a simple question from every prisoner: do you still support the PMOI/MEK? Those who answered yes were executed, even if they had already finished serving their original sentence. None of the victims had any new activities while in detention and many of them were 15 or 16 years of age at the time of original arrest and prosecution.
The executions started in the last week of July, peaking on July 28 until August 14, and continuing onto autumn and even the following year in some places.
Naturally, the vast majority of the victims were members and supporters of the PMOI/MEK, but the order extended to other groups in later stages.
Prisoners were hanged in groups, sometimes 10 to 15 at a time, and later transported out of prison by dump trucks, and buried in unmarked mass graves. There was no mercy on anyone, even young girls and pregnant women.
