Iran executes 3 protesters despite international outcry

SOMAYEH MALEKIAN
·2 min read
32

The Islamic Republic of Iran said it executed three men Friday morning on charges of "waging war against God" and collaboration with terrorist groups.

The judiciary's website Mizan claimed that Majid Kazemi, Saleh Mirhashemi and Saeed Yaghoubi's charges were based on their confessions that they were involved in killing three members of the regime's forces during protests in Isfahan last November.

Protests in Isfahan and other cities across the country erupted in September after 22-year old Mahsa Amini who was arrested for not fully abiding with the mandatory hijab rule of the country died in police custody.

PHOTO: Three men Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi and Saeed Yaghoubi are pictured at their trial Jan 9, 2023 in Tehran, Iran. (AP)
PHOTO: Three men Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi and Saeed Yaghoubi are pictured at their trial Jan 9, 2023 in Tehran, Iran. (AP)

At least 22,000 people had been arrested across the country in the ensuing protests, as the Islamic Republic News Agency confirmed. Iran Human Rights reported that at least 537 people were killed by the regime which never accepted the responsibility of what happened to Amini.

After Iran's Supreme Court upheld the execution sentences of Kazemi, Mirhashemi and Yaghubi, families of the men executed Friday and members of the Iranian public pleaded with international bodies to take any action to stop the Islamic Republic from carrying out the sentences.

Amnesty International said the men's fast-tracked trial was flawed and the pointed out there were significant procedural flaws, lack of evidence, and torture allegations that were never investigated.

PHOTO: A police motorcycle burns during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic republic's 'morality police', in Tehran, Iran, Sept. 19, 2022. (Wana News Agency via Reuters, FILE)
PHOTO: A police motorcycle burns during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic republic's 'morality police', in Tehran, Iran, Sept. 19, 2022. (Wana News Agency via Reuters, FILE)

In a last message that the three men reportedly signed and smuggled out of the prison, they asked the public to help them stop the regime from executing them.

"Hello, we ask you dear fellow citizens not to let them kill us. We need your help. We need your support," the message signed on May 17 reads.

PHOTO: Iranians protest a 22-year-old woman Mahsa Amini's death after she was detained by the morality police, in Tehran, Sept. 20, 2022, in this photo taken by an individual not employed by the Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran. (Middle East Images/AP)
PHOTO: Iranians protest a 22-year-old woman Mahsa Amini's death after she was detained by the morality police, in Tehran, Sept. 20, 2022, in this photo taken by an individual not employed by the Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran. (Middle East Images/AP)

In December, Mohsen Shekari was the first person hanged for alleged crimes related to the protests after allegedly holding up traffic and assaulting a guard. Less than a week later, 22-year-old Majid Reza Rahnavard, who had been convicted on charges of "waging war against God" amid protests, was executed.

According to the Iran Human Rights group, 13 executions were recorded on May 18 and at least 90 people have been executed since the start of the month.

United Nations Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said on May 9 that Iran is executing a "frighteningly" high number of people, with over 209 executed so far since January.

"On average so far this year, over 10 people are put to death each week in Iran, making it one the world's highest executors," said Türk.

Protests against the regime erupted across the country Friday in response to the executions.

Iran executes 3 protesters despite international outcry originally appeared on abcnews.go.com