Two Iranians under the age of 20 are at risk of execution in their country after being sentenced to death for their involvement in the protests sparked by the death in custody of a young Kurd, a foreign-based NGO said on Monday.
Iran is rocked by protests sparked by the September 16 death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, who died after she was arrested by vice squad for violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.
The authorities, who denounce “riots” orchestrated by foreign countries and opposition groups, arrested thousands of people, including 11 who were sentenced to death.
Two men have already been hanged, after being found guilty of killing or injuring members of the security forces or paramilitaries in the protests.
Mehdi Mohammadifard, an 18-year-old protester, was sentenced to death for setting fire to a traffic police kiosk in the western town of Nowshahr, Iran Human Rights (IHR) told AFP. an NGO based in Oslo.
A revolutionary court found him guilty of “corruption on earth” and of being an “enemy of God” (“mohareb” in Persian), according to him. The double accusation earned him the death sentence twice.
According to IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, Mr Mohammadifard appears to be the youngest person to be sentenced to death in connection with the protests.
Meanwhile, the judiciary agency Mizan Online reported that the court had upheld the death sentence of another man involved in the protests.
“Mohammad Boroghani’s death sentence was upheld on December 6 by the Supreme Court,” according to Mizan Online.
Mr. Boroghani was also prosecuted for “moharebeh” and his trial began on October 29.
According to Mizan Online, he had “wounded a security guard with a knife with the intention of killing him”, “sowed terror among the citizens”, and “burnt down the governorate headquarters of the city of Pakdasht” located in the south -east of Tehran.
According to IHR, this convict is 19 years old.
“The Islamic Republic, which has not been able to end the protests after 109 days, needs to resort to intimidation and execution to ensure its survival,” said Mr. Amiry-Moghaddam.
Justice has announced that it has sentenced 11 people to death for their role in the protests. Activists believe that figure is higher.
Three of them, including a Kurdish rapper, will be retried by decision of the Supreme Court.