Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old protester, will reportedly be hanged to death in Iran for “waging war against God”. This will be Iran's first execution amid mass arrests over the anti-regime demonstrations across the nation, according to human rights groups.
Due to a nationwide communications blackout, the execution order has not been verified.
A Norway-based Kurdish civil rights group has raised serious concerns over the lack of transparency in the legal proceedings. According to The US Sun, citing a source, the Soltani family told the Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights that authorities have informed them the sentence is final and will be carried out as scheduled.
Erfan has been charged with “waging war against God,” a crime punishable by death in Iran, according to The US Sun report.
According to Iran Human Rights (IHR), Erfan’s family was told that he had been sentenced to death, “and that the sentence is due to be carried out on 14 January”.
Erfan’s “only crime is calling for freedom for Iran,” said the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFD), and has urged the international community to intervene to stop the execution.
The 26-year-old has been denied basic legal rights, including access to a lawyer, human rights groups alleged. According to media reports, his sister, who is a licensed lawyer, has also been prevented from reviewing his case file or representing him.
However, another report said that the Soltani family was allowed a brief 10-minute visit after they were informed of the death sentence on January 11.
Warning that Erfan’s execution could be “the first of many,” Lebanese-Australian entrepreneur Mario Nawfal on X alleged that authorities are using fear to suppress dissent. He also claimed that nearly 2,000 people have died in the unrest.
Iranian authorities have described protesters as “rioters” and launched a sweeping crackdown.
At least 544 people have been killed, and more than 10,681 individuals have been arrested and transferred to prisons, according to a report by the Human Rights News Agency.
The last major protests were the 2022-2023 demonstrations sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini who had been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic dress code for women. In 2009, mass rallies took place after disputed elections.
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