Iran executes Afghan national over role in January protests

Friday, August 21, 2026 - Iran on Thursday executed an Afghan national convicted of the k!lling of police officers during anti-government demonstrations, the 30th in a wave of hangings since the start of the Middle East war, a rights group said.

Ghaem Hosseini was executed after being convicted of involvement in the de@ths of four police officers, the Iranian judiciary's Mizan Online website reported.

It said he was a foreign national, without providing further details. But, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) group said the 21-year-old was from Afghanistan and was hanged at Isfahan central prison.

Mizan Online said Hosseini was convicted "of drawing a weapon and causing fear and terror, creating widespread insecurity, acting against people's physical integrity and national security in a manner that seriously disrupted public order".

But according to IHR, Hosseini was accused of kicking one of the policemen, and the "authorities have presented no evidence proving that his actions led to the de@th of any of the policemen".

The case "is a stark example of collective punishment and the arbitrary use of the de@th penalty by the Islamic Republic," said IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam.

He is the fifth person to be hanged in the case involving the de@ths of four policemen in Isfahan during the nationwide protests that peaked in January.

He is also the second Afghan national to be executed over the protests, after Gol Mohammad Mohammadi was hanged in the same case in July.

At least 12 defendants in the case have been sentenced to death, said IHR.

IHR said that since wartime executions resumed on March 19, at least 30 protesters have been executed -- 28 in connection with the January protests and two in connection with the "Woman. Life. Freedom." protests that erupted in 2022.

"That is an average of more than one protester execution per week," it said.

IHR says hundreds of other protesters have been sentenced to death or are facing charges that could carry the de@th penalty, including over 70 in Isfahan, the main city of central Iran, which saw intense protests in January.