Iran set to execute footballer’s mistress

Shahla Jahed was convicted of murdering the wife of famous footballer Naser Mohammadkhani.

Iranian media reports that her lawyer has received official notice that Khadijeh Jahed, known as “Shahla”, is to be executed in Evin prison in Tehran at dawn on Wednesday.

It is thought her family and a number of other groups and individuals are still trying to obtain the consent of the victim’s family to stop Jahed’s execution.

Retracted confessions

She was sentenced to death for murder following confessions which she later retracted.

At the time of the murder, footballer Mohammadkhani was also arrested and imprisoned.

He was released after insisting that his mistress carried out the crime alone.

The news of Jahed’s imminent execution has outraged human rights groups who have campaigned for the sentence to be overturned.

This execution could, and should, be stopped on humanitarian or judicial grounds. Kate Allen Amnesty International

Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen said: “Amnesty supporters have been writing to the head of the Iranian Judiciary urging him to stop Shahla’s execution.

“We’ve actually been campaigning on this case since 2005. It will be terribly sad news if their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

“We are opposed to the death penalty in all cases as the ultimate cruel and inhuman punishment.

“On top of that, Shahla may not have received a fair trial. She retracted her confession, made after months in solitary confinement, leading to fears it was coerced.

“This is sadly far from unusual in Iran, in our experience. Her claim was never properly investigated.

“This execution could – and should – be stopped on humanitarian or judicial grounds.”