Iran announces new executions amid crackdown on unrest and alleged infiltration
Iran's judiciary has announced several executions this week in cases linked to unrest and alleged security offences. The latest announcement centres on Mehdi Khanaki, whom the judiciary described as an active member of a terrorist group. State television also showed a raid in Karaj, near Tehran, where security forces said they found handguns, ammunition and explosives.
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According to the judiciary's official news outlet, Khanaki was arrested during nationwide protests in January and tried by a revolutionary court. The court accused him of carrying out operational activity in favour of Israel, the United States and hostile groups. On Sunday, two other men were executed in connection with a 16-defendant case arising from deadly protests in Isfahan on 8 January.
Authorities said the two men played a role in the killing of several police officers. Foreign-based activists have disputed that account, alleging a lack of due process and the use of torture. The reporting also says many security-related cases are being prosecuted under a law introduced after last year's 12-day war with Israel, which broadened penalties for espionage and related offences.
The executions come against a wider backdrop of unrest that began in central Tehran on 28 December over economic issues before spreading into nationwide protests. Iranian authorities have described the unrest as a coup orchestrated by the United States and Israel, while rejecting findings by Amnesty International and other rights groups that security forces carried out mass unlawful killings on an unprecedented scale. The latest cases suggest the judiciary is continuing to treat protest-related violence and alleged infiltration as matters of national security.
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The crackdown also reflects the continuing political sensitivity of the war with Israel and the authorities' concern about internal dissent. The reporting says tens of thousands of people have been arrested in the aftermath of the protests and the war that began on 28 February. It also notes that a non-governmental teachers' association inside Iran recently condemned intensified prison sentences and continued pressure on guild activists, indicating that the security climate is affecting other parts of civil society as well.
What remains unclear is how many additional executions may follow and whether further cases tied to the protests or the war will be announced. It is also not clear how the courts are weighing the allegations of torture and due process violations raised by activists. The next developments to watch are any further judicial statements, possible international reaction, and whether the authorities expand the use of the post-war security law in other cases.
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