Source AP
At the World Report 2010 conference in Dubai on Sunday the Human Rights Watch unveiled its report regarding the top human rights violators of 2009, Iran was among the countries named as the worst offenders.
The Human Rights Watch named a number of key developments in Iran over the past year that were troubling, going as far as to call the current situation in Iran a “human rights disaster”. Since the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, security forces, such as the Basij Resistance Force and the Revolutionary Guards have targeted protestors and dissidents in an attempt to silence the opposition to the government. The measures taken included arresting hundreds of protestors and their families arbitrarily and holding them in jail, torturing and sexually assaulting prisoners and show trials which in some cases resulted in death sentences. The Human Rights Watch documented 26 cases of torture and coerced confessions of prisoners.
In addition, Iranians are banned from communicating with foreign news organizations including the BBC. Security forces harass members of minority religions such as the Baha’i and Sunnis. Seven Baha’i leaders are accused of espionage and “illegal cooperation” with Israel. The seven are slated to stand trial on February 7, 2010.
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