Iran is allegedly due to execute its first protester on Wednesday following mass arrests over the anti-regime demonstrations erupting across the nation, according to human rights groups.
Erfan Soltani, 26, is allegedly scheduled to be hanged to death after his arrest during the protests in Karaj last Thursday, the Iran Human Rights (IHR) and National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFD) NGO groups said.
“His family was told that he had been sentenced to death and that the sentence is due to be carried out on 14 January,” the IHR said.
The NUFD, which is calling for international support to stop Soltani’s hanging, added that the man’s “only crime is calling for freedom for Iran.”
Soltani is allegedly unable to seek legal advice to defend himself.
The protester is being charged with “waging war against God,” a crime punishable by death in Iran, The US Sun reported.
Soltani’s alleged execution orders have yet to be independently verified amid the nationwide communications blackout in Iran.
The 26-year-old is among the more than 10,000 people reportedly incarcerated by the regime in the last two weeks for taking part in the anti-government protests sparked by Iran’s failing economy.
Tehran has enacted a brutal crackdown on the protests, dubbing its participants “rioters,” which has resulted in more than 500 deathsas of Monday, according to human rights groups.
IHR Director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam warned that the death toll is likely to increase as Tehran is likely to execute many of those arrested to send a message to its detractors.
“The risk of mass and extrajudicial executions of protesters is extremely serious,” Amiry-Moghaddam said in a statement.
“Under the Responsibility to Protect, the international community has a duty to protect civilian protesters against mass killings by the Islamic Republic and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” he added, calling for the world to unite behind the demonstrators.
President Trump has warned Tehran that violence against the protesters would be met with a military response from the US, with the White House confirming Monday that the commander in chief was weighing whether or not to bomb Iran.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that while diplomacy remains Trump’s first option, he “has shown he’s unafraid to use military options if and when he deems necessary.”
“He certainly doesn’t want to see people being killed in the streets of Tehran. And unfortunately that’s something we are seeing right now,” she added.
Iran’s top officials have warned that Tehran would retaliate against US troops in the region if America were to launch an attack, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claiming that the Islamic Republic is “fully prepared for war.”
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