Zahra Shahbaz Tabari, a 67-year-old Iranian political prisoner, has been sentenced to death by a revolutionary court on charges of collaboration with groups fighting the Islamic Republic, a US-based human rights group said on Saturday.
Authorities have accused her of links to the exiled opposition group Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), a charge the family denies, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
The ruling was issued last week by Judge Ahmad Darvish of Branch One of the Rasht Revolutionary Court following a brief video hearing. Shahbaz Tabari’s trial lasted less than ten minutes, and her family called the proceedings sham and illegal, HRANA wrote.
She had no access to an independent lawyer, her son told HRANA. “The court-appointed attorney did not defend her and simply endorsed the verdict…The entire session was a show.”
He added that his mother had no connection with any political organization and that the accusations were entirely fabricated.
Shahbaz Tabari was arrested on April 17 at her home in Rasht and transferred to Lakan Prison. Security forces searched her residence and confiscated family belongings during the arrest.
The evidence cited in her case included a piece of cloth bearing the slogan ‘Woman, Resistance, Freedom’ and an unpublished voice message. There was no indication of organizational or armed activity, her family said.
Family appeal
“The judge smiled while announcing the death sentence,” her family said, describing the hearing as “a clear violation of human rights.”
They have seven days to appeal and have called on international human rights groups for urgent intervention.
Shahbaz Tabari is an electrical engineer and member of Iran’s Engineering Organization. She holds a master’s degree in Sustainable Energy from the University of Borås in Sweden and was previously detained for peaceful online activity before being released with an electronic ankle tag, HRANA said.
The sentence comes amid what activists describe as a surge in executions across Iran. The Iran Human Rights Society said 28 inmates were executed on October 22 alone, bringing the total for the month to 280.
Amnesty International warned on October 16 that more than 1,000 people have been executed in Iran so far in 2025, many following unfair trials aimed at silencing dissent.
The rights group urged UN member states to take immediate action, calling the executions “a shocking spree” averaging four per day.
