Executions in Iran feared to continue as authorities seek to quell unrest – NPR

ISTANBUL — The Iranian government has executed two people since protests broke out in September following the death of a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, in the custody of Iran’s so-called “morality police.”

On December 8, 23-year-old Mohsen Shekari was the first to be executed. He was hanged after participating in the protests in Tehran. Four days later, Majid-Reza Rahnavard, also 23, was publicly executed; His body was hung from a crane in the northeastern city of Mashhad. Like Shekari, he was convicted of “making war against God,” a capital offense.

The executions are Tehran’s main response to protests that have swept the country since Amini’s death, signaling that Iran’s clerical leadership feels it has few options other than brute force to quell the unrest.

A pro-government television channel broadcast audio described as Rahnavard’s confession to police. NPR could not immediately confirm the authenticity of the audio.

“Unfortunately, my own arrow hit my brother,” the recording reads, seen as a reference to the Basij militia members Rahnavard was convicted of fatally stabbing.

There are ongoing efforts to punish the protesters.

The government continues to try to quell anti-regime demonstrations, which began as an expression of public outrage over Amini’s assassination but quickly morphed into calls for the overthrow of Iran’s cleric-led regime.

Official efforts to punish those linked to the riots are also continuing.

The deputy head of Allameh University in Tehran told Iran’s Mehr news agency that some 20 students were banned from taking classes after taking part in a demonstration on December 7.

“These students are people who insisted on continuing on their way and did not appreciate our tolerant behavior,” the university official was reported as saying.

The Norway-based group Iran Human Rights says at least 469 people have died in riots since the demonstrations began, including 63 children.

The number of prisoners is much higher. Estimation of groups of rights at least 18,000 people have been detainedwith at least 39 seen at risk of receiving a death sentence or being executed.

Among those detained is actress Taraneh Alidoosti, star of The seller, which won the Oscar for best foreign language film in 2017. A statement from Iran’s judiciary said several celebrities, including Alidoosti, had been cited for “unsubstantiated comments on recent events” and for posting “provocative material in support of street riots”.

A doctor is among those facing a death sentence

One of those sentenced to death is Dr. Hamid Ghareh Hassanlou, a 53-year-old radiologist. His wife, Farzaneh Ghareh Hassanlou, has been sentenced to 25 years in solitary confinement. Both were arrested after being caught up in a protest.

Hassanlou was tortured and denied access to his own lawyer, anti-regime activists say. The government-appointed lawyer reportedly did not mount any defense, instead advising his client to accept charges of crimes against God.

Hassanlou’s brother, Hassan, who lives in the Netherlands, tells NPR that Hamid is not a violent or dangerous man.

“No, no violence, quite the opposite,” he says. “On a personality level, very stubborn. And in anything he believed in, he could be stubborn as hell.”

Hassan Hassanlou says that his brother formed a group that built four hospitals in slums, and that is entirely in keeping with his nature.

His biggest regret, he says, is that the last time Hamid called him, he couldn’t take the call.

“I didn’t get a chance to call him back,” he said. “And I always regret not answering that specific call.”

If he could send his brother a message now, Hassan knows exactly what he would say.

“I’m proud of you,” he says. “Because honestly I am. I really miss him, but at the same time, I’m so proud of him. I never asked myself in my thoughts, ‘Why did you do this?’ Of course, the implication was huge for him, for his family, for all the people around him. But I’m still proud of him.”