Iran hangs 3, including teen wrestler, in first executions over Jan. protests
Iran executed three men on Thursday accused of killing police officers during protests in January, as activists warned of a new surge in executions. The war with Israel and the USA continues.
These were Iran’s first executions on the subject. demonstrations across the country He faced harsh intervention from the authorities.
Two sources confirmed to CBS News that Saleh Mohammadi, a young member of Iran’s national wrestling team, was among three people executed in Iran.
Human rights groups said the trio were executed without a fair trial and made confessions under torture.
Mohammadi, Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi were hanged in the city of Qom, south of Tehran, after being convicted of the deadly crime of waging war against Allah, known as moharebeh under Iran’s sharia, the judiciary’s Mizan news agency said.
They were found guilty of involvement in the murder of two police officers and carrying out “operational actions” in favor of Israel and the United States.
“This is the terrorist regime of Iran,” White House press secretary Olivia Wales told CBS News Thursday night. “President Trump will never allow these murderous, evil terrorists to obtain nuclear weapons to threaten the American people, and this horrific tragedy is a stark reminder of why Operation Epic Rage is justified and necessary.”
There were particular concerns about the fate of Mohammadi, a young wrestling champion who competed internationally, who, according to Amnesty International, was “denied an adequate defense and forced to make confessions in fast-paced proceedings that bore no resemblance to a meaningful trial.”
The Norway-based Iranian Human Rights NGO said following the executions that the three men were “sentenced to death after an unfair trial based on confessions extracted under torture.”
It was stated that Mohammadi turned 19 last week.
Iranian legal affairs observer Dadban added that they were “deprived of the right to effective access to independent counsel and defence” and that the use of the death penalty under these circumstances was akin to “extrajudicial execution”.
“Risk of mass execution”
A day earlier, Iranian authorities had executed Kouroush Keyvani, a dual Iranian-Swedish citizen, on charges of spying for Israel, a death sentence strongly condemned by Stockholm and the European Union.
This was the first public announcement of such an execution since Israel and the United States launched an attack on Iran on February 28, killing the Supreme Leader. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and trigger spreading war throughout the Middle East.
“We are deeply concerned about the risk of mass executions of protesters and political prisoners in the shadow of war.” said Iran Human Rights.
“Since the Islamic Republic knows that the real threat to its survival comes from the Iranian people who demand radical change, these executions are carried out to spread fear in society,” the statement said.
Protests against the rising cost of living in Iran, which began in late December, turned into nationwide anti-government demonstrations that peaked on January 8 and 9.
Human rights groups accuse security forces of killing thousands of people in their crackdown on protests, and officials blame the United States and Israel.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency has recorded more than 7,000 killings, the vast majority of which were of protesters, while warning that the death toll could be much higher.
Tehran acknowledged that more than 3,000 people died during the unrest, including security forces and innocent bystanders, and attributed the violence to “terrorist acts”.
Iran’s hard-line judiciary chief, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, warned there would be “no tolerance” towards those convicted of acts of violence during the protests.
Iran Human Rights said hundreds of people were facing charges that could lead to the death penalty in connection with the protests. President Donald Trump initially warned that the United States would attack Iran if it executed protesters, but later focused on its nuclear program.
According to human rights groups, Iran is the world’s most prolific executioner after China. According to figures from Iran Human Rights, at least 1,500 people were executed last year.
The Islamic Republic executed 13 people and 12 others on charges related to the war with Israel in June 2025. Accusations related to 2022-2023 nationwide protestsBy rights groups.
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