Tehran has taken the first step towards executing a protester amid ongoing anti-government protests in Iran. According to human rights groups, the death sentence of 26-year-old protester Erfan Soltani could be carried out on Wednesday (January 14).
The British newspaper The Guardian reported that Erfan was convicted and sentenced to death after a speedy trial following his arrest last week. He was arrested in the city of Karaj, a northwestern suburb of Tehran, as nationwide protests reached their peak and internet connections were shut down.
Amnesty International has warned that Iranian authorities are using summary trials and arbitrary executions to suppress dissent and intimidate dissent. The organization claims that Erfan’s family has been cut off from all contact with him since January 8, and that authorities only informed his family of his execution on January 11.
According to human rights observers, Iran is the world’s second-largest executioner after China. The Norway-based Iran Human Rights Group estimates that at least 1,500 people were hanged in the country last year.