On April 11, at a conference held at the town hall of Paris’s 5th arrondissement, attended by French mayors, elected officials, and prominent figures, Florence Berthout, the mayor of the 5th arrondissement, announced a statement signed by over 1,000 French mayors. The statement supports the call by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, leader of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), to end executions in Iran and affirms her firm commitment to abolishing the death penalty.
In their statement, the mayors expressed concern about the increasing trend of executions, which has intensified since Masoud Pezeshkian took office as the regime’s president in July 2024. They added: The ruling regime uses these executions for political purposes, aiming to prevent popular uprisings by instilling fear and terror.
At a major conference in Paris's 5th Arrondissement, @FBerthout unveiles a statement signed by over 1,000 French mayors, condemning executions in Iran and supporting @Maryam_Rajavi’s call to abolish the death penalty. Follow our reporter for coverage! #FreeIran2025 pic.twitter.com/pb3EzRcMrG
— SIMAY AZADI TV (@en_simayazadi) April 11, 2025
The mayors’ statement further notes that the report by Professor Javaid Rehman, the former UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, stated that the massacre, torture, and inhumane acts against the PMOI were carried out with genocidal intent. Every execution under this regime is inherently political. The international community’s lack of response to the repression, killings, and executions has encouraged the regime to continue its suppression, especially through executions. The UN Fact-Finding Mission, in its report, recognized the regime’s acts of murder, imprisonment, torture, rape, and other forms of sexual violence as crimes against humanity.
Speakers at the conference included Geoffroy Boulard, Mayor of Paris’s 17th arrondissement; Dominique Attias, president of the European Lawyers Foundation; Ingrid Betancourt, former Colombian presidential candidate; Jean-François Legaret, President of the Foundation for Middle Eastern Studies and former Mayor of Paris’s 1st arrondissement; Jacques Boutault, Deputy Mayor of Central Paris; Gilbert Mitterrand, President of France Libertés; Bruno Macé, Mayor of Villiers-Adam; Gérard Lauton, Professor Emeritus at Paris-Est Créteil University; and Pierre Bercis, President of Nouveaux Droits de l’Homme. They emphasized the role of the Iranian Resistance and the need to recognize the Iranian people’s right to confront the regime, expressing their support for the struggles of the Iranian people.
Message to the Paris Conference “1,000 French Cities Against the Death Penalty in Iran”
The protests of more than a thousand honorable French mayors against executions in Iran are a powerful cry—one that echoes the voice of thousands of death row inmates in Khamenei’s prisons.… pic.twitter.com/fGlAHqHsXP— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 11, 2025
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, who addressed the conference online during the announcement of the statement by over 1,000 French mayors against executions in Iran, said: ” The protests of more than a thousand honorable French mayors against executions in Iran are a powerful cry—one that echoes through the hundreds of prisons under Khamenei’s rule, reaching thousands of death row inmates. This outcry strengthens the resolve of the courageous prisoners who, for over a year, have taken part in the campaign against executions every Tuesday. It also sends a powerful message to the families waiting outside prison gates that they are not alone. Yes, the call of a thousand French mayors is proof that the true representatives of the French people stand with the people of Iran… As the mayors’ declaration rightly states: The authorities in Iran are attempting, through an atmosphere of terror, to prevent a popular uprising. Therefore, under this regime, every execution is inherently political. Yet the mullahs’ daily crimes only deepen the resolve of the courageous youth who are determined to overthrow this regime.”
In another part of her speech, Mrs. Rajavi recalled: “Thousands of elected officials stand with the Iranian people by supporting the ‘No to Executions’ campaign. In 2023, a majority of French parliamentarians voiced their support—and in 2024, 200 members of the previous National Assembly joined in condemning human rights violations and arbitrary executions. They have called for recognition of the Iranian people’s right to resist religious fascism—a policy also endorsed by a majority of the United States Congress, as well as majorities in 32 European parliaments and several Arab nations. If adopted by European governments, this policy is the only one that could make the Iranian regime regret its acts of terrorism and hostage-taking.”