Iran Executes 3 Protesters Despite International Outcry
Iran executed three men on Friday for alleged deadly violence during last year’s anti-government protests, according to the judiciary’s website Mizan. Majid Kazemi, Saleh Mirhashemi, and Saeed Yaghoubi were accused of killing a police officer and two members of the paramilitary Basij group in Isfahan during the nationwide protests sparked by the death of a young woman detained over dress code violations.
Human rights groups, including the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran and Amnesty International, condemned the executions, claiming that the accused were tortured, coerced into televised confessions, and denied due process. The protests have waned in recent months, but sporadic acts of defiance persist, including the refusal of a growing number of women to wear the hijab.
Robert Malley, the US envoy for Iran, criticized the executions as a violation of human rights. The EU has also condemned Iran’s actions, calling for the abolition of the death penalty. Iran has reportedly executed a total of seven people in connection with the protests.
Iran’s economy has been declining since the US withdrew from the 2015 nuclear agreement and restored sanctions. Iran is among the world’s leading executioners with at least 582 people executed in 2022, up from 333 the previous year.
