The Iranian regime continued its campaign of executions against those involved in protests: three more citizens were hanged Sunday morning after being convicted of involvement in riots that broke out in the country last January. The three, Hassan Diavand, Hamid Kazemi and Reza Zangana, were arrested during protests in the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, and executed after Iran's Supreme Court upheld their death sentences.
According to a statement from the Iranian judiciary, the three were accused of carrying out operations on behalf of Israel and the United States and participating in armed riots against the regime. Authorities claimed they used firearms, grenades and Molotov cocktails, set fire to public buildings and damaged electrical infrastructure in Karaj, which caused power outages in parts of the city.
According to the report, Hassan Diavand was arrested on January 11 after being identified by authorities as a suspect in setting fire to public property and encouraging others to participate in violent actions. Ten additional suspects were subsequently arrested, who according to authorities operated under his command and were involved in the incidents.
The three defendants were sentenced to death and confiscation of their property. The other defendants in the case were sentenced to prison terms of five to ten years.
The executions add to a series of measures the Iranian regime is taking against those arrested during the wave of protests in January. According to a report by Iran International, five people arrested in connection with the protests were executed in less than a week, and three more were executed Sunday morning.
Human rights organizations have previously expressed concern about trial proceedings against detainees in cases related to protests, pointing to claims of confessions obtained through torture and expedited legal proceedings.
