ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran on Monday executed two more people accused of involvement in the country’s nationwide January protests, according to semi-official media, despite earlier warnings from US President Donald Trump urging Tehran not to carry out such executions.
The semi-official Tasnim news agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported Monday that Akbar Daneshvarkar and Mohammad Taghavi-Sangdehi were accused of links to the dissident Mojahedin Khalq Organization (MKO/MEK) - a leftist Islamist group established before Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Tasnim said the two were tried on charges of "carrying out multiple terrorist actions and explosions under the guidance of the terrorist Monafeqin group, membership in a rebel group, assembly and conspiracy to commit crimes against the country's internal security through knowingly communicating with hypocrite handlers, committing effective harassing actions in support of the terrorist Monafeqin group with the aim of overthrowing the Islamic Republic of Iran system.”
The agency added that their lawyers were present in court and that the pair were sentenced to death after considering the “accused’s confessions,” “reports,” and CCTV footage, “overlooking crime scenes.” Tasnim said, “After confirmation and finalization of the verdict in the Supreme Court” the suspects “were hanged this morning.”
The executions follow a series of similar actions by Iranian authorities in recent weeks. In mid-March, Iran executed a man accused of spying for Israel, following threats by officials against public dissent.
Around the same time, Tehran also executed three men convicted of killing two police officers in connection with nationwide anti-government protests in January, described as the largest and deadliest unrest since the 1979 revolution. The protests were driven by a severe economic crisis and the rapid depreciation of the Iranian rial.
Iranian security forces have also detained hundreds of people for posting photos and videos of the aftermath of airstrikes carried out by Israel and the US since February 28.
The latest executions come despite warnings from Trump, who, before the war, had cautioned Iran against executing protesters and later said he had received assurances from Tehran that it would not do so.
Iran carried out at least 1,639 executions last year, including some in public squares, according to a rights group.
Tehran has repeatedly faced accusations from human rights organizations of carrying out executions following unfair and secretive trials, including on charges related to alleged espionage for Israel and the United States.
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