Iran executed two men on Monday after convicting them of membership in a banned opposition group and attempting to overthrow the Islamic Republic, the judiciary said.
“After confirmation and final approval of the sentence by the Supreme Court, Akbar Daneshvarkar and Mohammad Taghavi-Sangdehi were hanged this morning,” the judiciary’s Mizan Online website said.
The killings occur when Iran is at war with the United States and Israel, following strikes against the Islamic Republic on February 28 that sparked a larger regional crisis.
The two killed men were members of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran, also known as Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, which has been in exile since the 1980s and is classified as a terrorist organization by Tehran.
It is unclear when they were arrested or if they were participating in recent protests, but Mizan stated that they had participated in “riots and urban terrorist actions.”
Mizan stated that they were charged with engaging in “terrorist acts,” carrying out measures aimed at subverting the Islamic republic, and disturbing national security.
Protests in Iran began in late December over growing living costs and grew into widespread anti-government demonstrations, culminating on January 8 and 9.
Authorities said the protests, which began peacefully, devolved into “foreign-instigated riots” with murders and devastation.
Tehran claims that at least 3,000 people were murdered during the unrest, including security officers and civilians, and blames the bloodshed on “terrorist acts.”
The Human Rights Activists News Agency, located in the United States, has recorded almost 7,000 deaths, the majority of which are protesters, but warns that the true toll could be much higher.
