Abdorrahman Boroumand Center

for Human Rights in Iran

https://www.iranrights.org
Omid, a memorial in defense of human rights in Iran
One Person’s Story

Effat Khalifeh Soltani

About

Age: 45
Nationality: Iran
Religion: Islam (Shi'a)
Civil Status: Married

Case

Date of Killing: September 27, 1981
Location of Killing: Dastgerd Prison, Dastgerd, Esfahan Province, Iran
Mode of Killing: Shooting
Charges: Sympathizing with anti-regime guerilla groups; War on God, God's Prophet and the deputy of the Twelfth Imam

About this Case

The information regarding the execution of Ms. Effat Khalifeh Soltani was released in a communiqué from the Esfahan Islamic Revolutionary Tribunal, published in the Jomhuri Eslami newspaper on September 30, 1981. She was executed with her husband and her 16-year-old son.

Furthermore, Ms. Khalifeh Soltani’s name is included in “The List of Some Women Who Were Executed in the Islamic Republic”. This list was created by Iranian Women Association in Köln, Germany on September 10, 1997 and was completed by the help of ex-political prisoners in other countries. The later list is the source for this document and contains 1,533 names.

This execution was also reported in an addendum to the Mojahed magazine (No 261), published by Mojahedin Khalq Organization in 1985. The list includes 12028 individuals, affiliated with various opposition groups, who were executed or killed during clashes with the Islamic Republic security forces from June 1981 to the publication date of the magazine. Additional information about Ms. Khalifeh Soltani was obtained the Mojahedin Khalq Organization’s website.

Ms. Khalifeh Soltani, a mother of 5, was born in Esfahan. She was a sympathizer of the Mojahedin Khalq Organization and was arrested several times for her activities. In 1980, the first time she was arrested, she was at a gathering of prisoners’ mothers in front of the Esfahan prison. She was placed in a solitary confinement for 10 days. The second time she was arrested was May 2, 1981. She was released the next month.

Arrest and detention

No detailed information is available on Ms. Khalifeh Soltani's arrest and detention. The exact date of her last arrest is unknown. According to the information published by Mojahedin Khalq, she was arrested between June and September of 1981. She was detained in the basement of the Najafabad’s Revolutionary Guard’s Headquarter with 40 other women arrested in demonstrations.

Trial

No information is available on the defendant’s trial.

Charges

Ms. Khalifeh Soltani was accused of "being a member of the armed wing of the Mojahedin Khalq Organization... participating in armed action against the Islamic Republic of Iran, terrorism and murder …. Attacking Revolutionary Guards, attacking the Basij dormitories, throwing both Molotov cocktails and three way [explosives] in public places, [aiming] at the cars and shops of the Revolutionary Guards, along with those of the Basij and Hezbollahi people."

The charges brought against her, along with 52 other victims, are collective and general. The prosecution does not mention specific offenses for any of these individuals.

The validity of the criminal charges brought against this defendant cannot be ascertained in the absence of the basic guarantees of a fair trial.

Evidence of guilt

The report of this execution contains no evidence provided against the defendant.

Defense

No information is available on Ms. Khalifeh Soltani's defense.

Judgment

No details are available on the defendant’s execution. She was found guilty of "armed rebellion against the Islamic Republic" and sentenced to death. She was executed at the Dastgerd Prison on Sunday night, September 27, 1981.

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