Iran executes first protester since start of turmoil
A demonstrator in Iran has been killed for the first time since mass anti-government protests began in September, state news agency IRNA reported on Thursday.
The man was arrested in Tehran at the end of September and was taken to Iran’s Revolutionary Court in the capital where he was convicted for “waging war against God” according to Islamic law.
He was accused of assaulting a security guard with a weapon and inciting terror.
The judiciary has taken a hard line against protesters, with several death sentences already being handed down to demonstrators in recent weeks. This is the first to be carried out.
In parliament, too, lawmakers often demand harsh sentences, up to and including the death penalty, for the thousands of imprisoned protesters.
Human rights activists estimate that at least 470 protesters have been killed and more than 18,000 arrested during the protests that have rocked the country since mid-September.
The protests were triggered by the death of the Iranian Kurdish woman Jina Mahsa Amini on September 16. She died in police custody after being arrested for violating Islamic dress codes.
