Federal Foreign Office on the extension of the mandate of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the human rights situation in Iran

The UN Human Rights Council has shown once again that the international community is not losing sight of serious human rights violations in Iran.

A large majority of the member states extended the mandate of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission, which was established two and a half years ago, reaffirming that the work of the evidence and documentation mechanism will continue.

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission found that the Iranian regime is responsible for serious human rights violations, including crimes against humanity. Numerous witnesses were heard, documents evaluated and evidence capable of withstanding judicial scrutiny compiled to this end. Germany worked closely with the mission on this.

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission's latest report confirms that arbitrary arrests, torture and sexual violence against dissidents continue to be routine occurrences in Iran. The death penalty is imposed arbitrarily and is also used as a means of political repression. The number of executions is higher than ever. Women and children, as well as ethnic and religious minorities and other marginalised groups, are subject to systematic discrimination.

It was precisely for this reason that the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission recommended a follow-up mechanism to address the structural and systematic commission of human rights violations across the board. This mechanism was supported by a majority of the member states, including Germany. After all, it is clear that, two and a half years after the violent death of Jina Mahsa Amini and the subsequent Women, Life, Freedom movement in Iran, we still cannot accept the precarious human rights situation in the country.