Iran Executes Two More January Protest Participants
Iran executed two men on July 28 for their alleged involvement in the killing of four police officers during January protests, drawing condemnation and protests in Isfahan.
Iran's state media reported on July 28 that two individuals, Abolfazl Sepahi Bajani and Amirhossein Safari Hosseinabadi, were hanged in Isfahan. They were found guilty of participating in the killing of four police officers during the protests on January 8. Details of their trial remain unknown.
Following the announcement, videos on social media showed groups protesting the executions. Clashes between protesters and security forces were reported in Isfahan, although the scale of the unrest is unclear.
The executions came just hours after Mai Sato, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, stated that a group of UN experts had called on Tehran to immediately halt death sentences related to the Isfahan protests. In total, 12 people have been sentenced to death over the January protests, and four have now been executed. Human rights groups assert that the legal proceedings did not meet fair trial standards.
The January protests in Iran were a wave of demonstrations against government policies, which were violently suppressed. Thousands were killed, including members of security forces. Dozens of protesters have been sentenced to death. According to the UN, about 20 people have been executed in connection with the protests so far. Human rights organizations report that more than 300 people have been hanged in Iran since the beginning of the year.
