Protesters undertake hunger strike outside Parliament in solidarity with Iran's political prisoners

The introduction: 40 executions in Iran from 2 to 9 August, this week's mass execution took place on the anniversary of the 1988 massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in Iran, who were primarily members of the main Iranian opposition group People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI or MEK). 

The following is the text of the report published on 9 August by the International BusinessTimes:

Protesters inthe UK went on hunger strike for three days in solidarity with Iranian political prisoners on the anniversary of the 1988 massacre in the Islamic Republic.

The hunger strikers were joined by scores of other demonstrators as they stood outside Parliament demanding the UK government speak out against the treatment of current political detainees.

They also calledfor the government to recognise the victims and perpetrators of the 1988 massacre in Iran, in which state-sanctioned killings of political prisoners were carried out over several months leaving thousands of people dead.

Many taking part in the three-day demonstration that concluded on 8 August and included an exhibition of the regime's human rights abuses and a mock execution were related to people who had been imprisoned or killed in Iran.

One of the hunger strikers, 18-year-old Omid Ebrahimi, said: "My dad was very active in Iran and spent 10 years in prison there.

"He was there at the time of the 1988 massacre and he whenever he talks about the memories he had and the friends he had that were taken from him and executed during this massacre I am astounded.

The demonstrators not only called for those who took part in the 1988 massacre to be held accountable, they also wanted to raise awareness of the plight of people currently being held in prisons in Iran.

UK spokesperson for the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) Hossein Abedini said: "The situation inside the prison where the recent executions took place is very worrying and many people, many prisoners are on hunger strike there and there is very tight security.

"There is a very worrying situation if the silence continues and robust measures are not introduced immediately."