Paris, December 11 {No. 98-277} - UNESCO Director-General Federico Mayor expressed his shock today over the murder of Mohammad Mokhtari, an Iranian writer and poet renowned as a fierce defender of human rig hts.

“Mohammad Mokhtari, who has been murdered in a despicable manner, was a leading activist for the human rights that we have been celebrating over the last few days, one of the men and women who fight tirelessly for the freedom of all. Such unspeakable acts, committed anonymously in the most cowardly way, can only disgust all those who fight for a fairer and freer world,” the Director-General said.

He added: “I hope that the Iranian authorities will do everything within their power to ensure that this murder does no go unpunished and so that other Iranians do not lose their lives out of their love of freedom and their commitment to human rights.”

Mr Mayor was reacting to the announcement that Mohammad Mokhtari’s body had been found in the Varamin desert, near Tehran. The dissident poet was the former national secretary of the Iranian Writers Association - a currently banned organisation that campaigns for freedom of expression and press freedom. Another member of the association, sociologist Mohammad Pouyandeh, has been missing since December 9.