Calls for Labor Strike in Iran’s Kurdistan After Executions

Seven Iranian human rights organizations and an opposition party called for a labor strike across the western Kurdistan province on January 30 in response to the execution of four Kurdish prisoners.

"Executions in Kurdistan have intensified, and the repression machine of the Islamic Republic of Iran is working at full capacity," said a joint statement issued by the rights groups.

They said that the Iranian government is "executing young people through brutal methods, suppressing the people of Kurdistan and stifling their pursuit of freedom."

The statement cited the January 29 execution of four members of the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan after grossly unfair trials, and the confirmation of the death sentences for six other political prisoners by the Supreme Court. 

The purpose of the general strike is to draw national and international attention to the dire human rights situation in Kurdistan and to halt further executions, it said.

Meanwhile, Abdulla Mohtadi, the secretary-general of the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan called for a similar protest action on January 30. 

"The Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan, along with numerous political parties, civil organizations, and human rights institutions in Kurdistan, will observe a day of strike and public holiday tomorrow," he wrote on the social media platform X. "This move will serve as a tribute to the fallen comrades and as a collective protest against the massacre.”