The authorities want to put an end to the demonstrations unleashed by the death of the young Mahsa Amini with exemplary measures.
A court in Iran has handed down the first death sentence against a person detained for taking part in the protests that have engulfed the country in the past two months.
Tehran’s Revolutionary Court convicted the defendant, whose name was not released, of setting fire to a government facility and “enmity against God,” state media reported.
Another court, meanwhile, sentenced 5 people to between 5 and 10 years in prison for crimes against national security and public order.
Human rights groups have warned that authorities may be planning “hasty executions”.
At least 20 people are currently facing possible charges that could lead to their deaths, the Norway-based organization Iran Human Rights said, citing official reports.
Its director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, called on the international community to take urgent action and “strongly warn the Islamic Republic of the consequences of executing protesters.”
Hundreds of victims and detainees
Protests against the Iranian clerical regime erupted two months ago, after news broke of the death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who had been detained by the Moral Police for breaking the strict hijab rules.
The outrage and unrest caused by the case have sparked mobilizations that have spread to 140 cities and towns and have become the most important challenge to the Islamic Republic in more than a decade.
Iran Human Rights estimates that at least 326 protesters, including 43 children and 25 women, have been killed in a violent crackdown by security forces.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), which is also based outside the country, put the death toll at 339 and said another 15,300 protesters were detained.
This same group has reported the death of 39 policemen and soldiers.
Forceful measures
Iranian leaders have called the protests “riots” instigated by the country’s foreign enemies.
Last week, the head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, declared that the “principal perpetrators” should be identified as soon as possible and sentenced to terms that would have a deterrent effect on others.
He warned that “rioters” could be charged with “moharebeh” (enmity with God), “efsad fil-arz” (corruption on Earth) and “baghy” (armed rebellion), all of which can be punished by imprisonment. death in the Iranian legal system, which is based on Sharia (Islamic law).
Those who possess and use a weapon or firearm, disrupt national security or kill someone could face “qisas” (retaliation in kind), it said, apparently responding to a call for retributive justice from 272 of the 290 members. of the Iranian parliament.
More than 2,000 people have already been accused of participating in the “recent riots”, according to data from the judiciary.
On Sunday, local media quoted judicial officials as saying that 164 people had been charged in the southern province of Hormozgan, another 276 in the central province of Markazi and 316 in neighboring Isfahan.