Calling protesters traitors as Iran executed men arrested in the 2022 uprising
From December 2022 Iran executed men detained during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests after trials that rights groups called grossly unfair. In January 2023 Khamenei said those who set fires had committed treason, and the UN human rights chief described the executions as state-sanctioned killing.
Editorial timeline of public reporting, not a legal finding.
- Mohsen Shekari becomes the first protester executed - Reuters and BBC News reported that Mohsen Shekari, 23, was hanged for 'moharebeh' (waging war against God) after being convicted of wounding a Basij member with a knife and blocking a street. Human Rights Watch said protesters' trials were grossly unfair and defendants were denied lawyers of their choice. The judiciary was headed by Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei (@ejei_org), whom Khamenei had appointed. Iran executes protester for injuring security guard with knife, Tasnim says
- Mohammad Mehdi Karami and Seyed Mohammad Hosseini hanged - Reuters reported that Iran's judiciary hanged Mohammad Mehdi Karami and Seyed Mohammad Hosseini, convicted of killing a Basij member near Karaj. Rights groups said their confessions were extracted under torture. Iran hangs two men for alleged crimes committed during protests, judiciary says
- Says those who set fires 'undoubtedly committed treason' - BBC Persian and RTÉ reported that Khamenei said those who set fire to public property during the protests had 'undoubtedly committed treason'. On the same day the judiciary sentenced three more protesters to death. آیتالله خامنهای: کسانی که آتش زدند قطعاً مرتکب خیانت شدند
- UN rights chief calls the executions 'state-sanctioned killing' - Reuters reported that UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said Iran's use of criminal proceedings to punish protesters amounted to 'state-sanctioned killing'. Iran executions amount to 'state-sanctioned killing', UN rights chief says
- Majid Kazemi, Saleh Mirhashemi and Saeed Yaghoubi executed in Isfahan - Reuters and Amnesty International reported that Iran executed three men detained during protests in Isfahan, convicted of killing security personnel. Amnesty said they had been tortured into forced confessions and called for a robust international response. Iran executes three men over recent protests, judiciary says