Two protesters, Amirhossein Safari and Abolfazl Sepahi, who allegedly participated in the January widespread protests in Iran, have been publicly executed via hanging by the country’s authorities.
According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, the two individuals were hanged in the early hours of Tuesday at Isfahan’s Shahid Alikhani Square amid loud booing from protesters, who were shouting “shameless” in opposition to the executions.
The New York Times several verified videos, including a blurry one circulating on Telegram and other social media platforms, showing aggrieved demonstrators near the event site.
Reports stated that Messrs Safari and Sepahi were alleged to be part of a group of men accused by authorities of killing four police officers during protests on the night of January 8.
The indictment against them said that the perpetrators attacked the officers with knives, machetes and axes, then doused them with gasoline and set their bodies on fire.
The execution came several months after Messrs Safari and Sepahi admitted to the crimes in a televised confession broadcast on Iran’s state news channel as the lawyers representing the pair failed to comment on the charges publicly.
However, Iranian rights groups and human rights lawyers say such confessions are often obtained under duress, frequently through psychological pressure or physical torture.
Furthermore, several rights groups mentioned that the two men and other individuals, who have been sentenced to death in connection with January demonstrations, had not been given due process.
