Bufordsecurity DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran hanged a man on Thursday for wounding a security guard with a knife and blocking a street in Tehran, the semi-official Tasnim news agency said.
The nationwide protests that erupted after the September 16 death of a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman, Masa Amini, are one of the biggest challenges for the Islamic Republic since its founding in 1979.
Authorities are cracking down on the protests, and on Monday the Revolutionary Guard urged the judiciary to give swift and firm sentences to those accused of “crimes against national and Islamic security”.
The Tasnim news agency named the executed man as Mohsen Shekari, but gave no further details.
State media released a video purporting to show Shekhali confessing to a bruise on his right cheek. He admitted to hitting a member of the Bajizi militia with a knife and blocking the road on a motorcycle with one of his friends.
Rights groups allege Shekhali was tortured and forced to confess to his crimes.
Amnesty International said Iranian authorities are seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in “fake trials designed to intimidate those participating in the popular uprising that has rocked Iran”.
“Iranian authorities must immediately revoke all death sentences, refrain from seeking the death penalty, and drop all charges against those arrested in connection with their peaceful participation in protests,” it said. rice field.
Western governments have also expressed dismay at the high number of executions in Iran.
Iran blames foreign enemies, including the United States, for causing the unrest.
Justice Department spokesman Masoud Setayeshi said on Tuesday that five people charged with the murder of Rouhollah Ajamian, a member of the Basij militia, have been sentenced to death with appealable rulings.
Iran’s semi-official news agency ISNA reported on Thursday that five suspects of the Islamic State militant group have been charged with “war against God” for the massacre of Shia pilgrims in October. rice field. This crime deserves the death penalty.
Even before the recent unrest, executions had been on the rise in Iran. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said this year’s number exceeded 400 by September for the first time in five years.
Reported by Dubai Newsroom. Edited by Michael Georgy, Crispian Balmer, Angus MacSwan
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