Based on unofficial reports, two young Kurdish men from the city of Piranshahr (in Iran Kurdistan) have been sentenced to death by public stoning. The sentence was determined after two court sessions and issued to Ayoub and Mosleh for what appears to be the crime of engaging in an illicit sexual relationship with a teenager who was between the age of 15 to 17 at the time. It is understood that the two young men did not have any legal representation at any stage from the time of their arrest. According to Iran’s Islamic law, the age of criminal responsibility for boys is set at 15 lunar years. Ayoub and Mosleh were reportedly 18 and 19 years old...
A credible source has indicated that the sexual act in question was consensual. It is difficult to determine the real facts since authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran have not made public the official charges against Ayoub and Mosleh or the details surrounding the case. Additionally, no lawyers are assigned to defend the two young men and the families are unwilling to publicize the matter, most likely for reasons pertaining to upholding their honour, as other similar cases have suggested...
One of the human rights groups, The Iranian Queer Organization (IRQO), issued a statement urging the Iranian people to intervene and prevent another tragedy that will wound the soul of the people in the country.
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