Iran has executed a man for injuring a paramilitary officer in the first known execution linked to protests that have occured in the country since September, state media reported Thursday, December 8..
The protester was named as Mohsen Shekari by Mizan Online, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s judiciary, and the semi-official Tasmin news agency.
He was reportedly convicted of “waging war against God” for stabbing a member of the Basij paramilitary force at a protest in Tehran on September 23.
Shekari was sentenced to death on October 23, and executed by hanging on Thursday morning, December 8 according to Mizan Online. It was the first execution connected to the protests to be publicly reported by state media.
Iran Human Rights, a non-profit rights organization has called for a strong international response to the execution.
“His execution must be met with the strongest possible terms and international reactions. Otherwise, we will be facing daily executions of protesters who are protesting for their fundamental human rights,” the group’s director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said.
Amiry-Moghaddam said that Shekari was executed without any due process or access to a lawyer of his choice in a “show trial” by the Revolutionary Court.
Several Iranians have been sentenced to death by execution during the nationwide protests, which were sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after she was apprehended by the state’s morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly.
Her death touched a nerve in the Islamic Republic, with prominent public figures coming out in support of the movement, including top Iranian actor Taraneh Alidoosti. The protests have since coalesced around a range of grievances with the authoritarian regime.
According to Amnesty International, as of November, Iranian authorities are seeking the death penalty for at least 21 people in connection with the protests.
At least 458 people have been killed in the unrest since September, according to Norway-based Iran Human Rights on Wednesday.
