Iran Executes Protestor for Alleged Role in 2022 Uprising

Latest Developments

The Islamic Republic executed a protestor arrested for his role in Iran’s nationwide protests that began in September 2022, The New York Times reported on August 6. Authorities arrested Reza Rasaei, a 34-year-old ethnic Kurdish Iranian, in November 2022 and charged him with allegedly killing an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps member amid the protests. Tehran executed Rasaei in Dizel Abad prison in Kermanshah Province without notifying him or his lawyer.

Branch 2 of the Kermanshah Criminal Court sentenced Rasaei to death in October 2023, and Iran’s Supreme Court upheld the sentence in December 2023. Rasaei’s sentence followed an unjust trial that relied on confessions extracted through torture, including beatings, electric shocks, suffocation, and sexual violence. Rasaei is the 10th protestor whom Iran has executed in connection with the 2022 uprising.

Expert Analysis

“Many Iranian prisoners, especially those on death row, lack the crucial media and international attention needed for their survival, while a few prisoners receive all the coverage. The United States funds several human rights organizations to highlight and document the plight of political prisoners in Iran. A review of their performance and funding is needed to ensure all prisoners receive coverage, regardless of their political leaning.”— Saeed Ghasseminejad, FDD Senior Iran and Financial Economics Advisor

“The Islamic Republic’s inherently flawed judicial system functions as the execution arm of the regime, solely devoted to instilling fear among the population to suppress any form of civic engagement. The U.S. Treasury ought to designate Kermanshah Public Prosecutor Hamidreza Karimi Sekandar, who was directly involved in obtaining the death sentence that led to Rasaei’s execution.” — Janatan Sayeh, FDD Research Analyst.

Other Activists at Imminent Risk Amid Execution Surge

Several activists in Iran are currently facing death sentences on charges related to the 2022 protests. Mojahed Kourkour is at imminent risk of execution after Branch 39 of Iran’s Supreme Court upheld his conviction. Iran’s judiciary sentenced Kourkour to death in July 2023 for allegedly murdering a child protestor, but many activists and human rights organizations claim that the regime’s security forces shot the child. Khaled Pirzadeh, a well-known activist and former athlete tortured in custody, self-immolated on July 9 of this year in protest after the judiciary denied him access to a phone to contact his family and attorney. Pirzadeh has been admitted to Motahari Hospital in Tehran and is currently in critical condition.

Executions have drastically surged in Iran in recent weeks, reported the Oslo-based non-profit Iran Human Rights. Despite his affiliations to the regime’s so-called “reformist” faction, newly inaugurated President Masoud Pezeshkian has not halted the regime’s execution of political prisoners.

Related Analysis

“Executions in Iran Surge as Presidential Inauguration Nears,” FDD Flash Brief

“Executions Surge in Iran as Protests Persist,” FDD Flash Brief

“Iran Sentences Popular Rapper to Death Amid Widening Crackdown on Dissent,” FDD Flash Brief