Iran has executed three individuals, including a teenage champion wrestler, following accusations they killed two police officers during anti-regime protests. Saleh Mohammadi, a 19-year-old wrestling prodigy, was hanged publicly alongside Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi in the city of Qom on Thursday.
Mohammadi was arrested in January during nationwide protests and was sentenced to death just weeks later, accused of killing a security agent. Amnesty International reports that he denied the accusation and claimed his confession had been coerced under torture. However, the court dismissed his claims without investigation, and he was convicted of ‘moharebeh’—waging war against God, a charge that carries the death penalty.
The executions mark the first confirmed capital punishments related to the protests, which have roiled Iran since late 2022. The protests, initially sparked by the rising cost of living, quickly escalated into widespread anti-government demonstrations demanding greater freedoms and an end to repression. The Iranian judiciary’s Mizan News Agency reported that Ghasemi and Davoudi were also accused of murdering law enforcement personnel during the protests on January 8.
The Norway-based group Iran Human Rights condemned the executions, calling them “extrajudicial killings,” carried out after “grossly unfair trials” based on confessions obtained under torture. The organization noted that Mohammadi had turned 19 just last week, while Davoudi was on the cusp of his 22nd birthday.
“These executions are intended to stoke fear and silence opposition, as part of a broader campaign to suppress political dissent,” Iran Human Rights added in a statement.
The protests reached their peak on January 8-9, following the deaths of hundreds of protesters during a violent crackdown by security forces. Iranian authorities claimed the protests had turned into “foreign-instigated riots” marked by violence and vandalism, while human rights groups say the death toll is much higher than the official 3,000 fatalities. The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reports over 7,000 deaths, with some estimates reaching 30,000.
The violence has disproportionately affected the young, with more than 220 children reported killed during the crackdown. Despite repeated calls for accountability, Tehran has shown no signs of easing its repressive tactics. Human rights groups warn that those detained in the protests continue to face severe abuse in custody, including torture and denial of medical care.
One particularly harrowing case is that of Samira Parvareshkhah, arrested in January and released with severe injuries. She later died under mysterious circumstances, with human rights groups speculating that she may have been subjected to abuse or forced to ingest harmful substances. No official cause of death has been provided.
These brutal measures follow the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022 after her arrest for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code, a tragedy that sparked the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ movement. Authorities have consistently dismissed deaths in custody as suicide or overdose, yet many Iranians remain skeptical, citing a pattern of unexplained fatalities and injuries among detainees.
With over 2,200 executions carried out in the wake of the unrest, 2023 has seen the highest rate of state-sanctioned killings in decades. This escalation of violence comes during the final years of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s rule, further deepening the rift between the regime and a population determined to resist oppression.