Iran executes man arrested during protests

By Nathan Morley

Iran says it has executed a prisoner arrested during the ongoing anti-government protests.

This is the first known death sentence linked to the unrest which has been sweeping the country.

The prisoner was identified as Mohsen Shekari, who was accused of injuring a security guard with a machete and blocking a street in Tehran.

Rights groups claim Shekari was tortured and forced to confess to his crime. It is reported that Iranian authorities are pursuing the death penalty for at least 21 people.

Three months into a nationwide uprising, the unrest continues.

The protests erupted in mid-September after the death of Mahsa Amini while she was held in police detention for supposedly violating the country’s hijab law.

Campaigners say Amini suffered a deadly blow to the head, a claim denied by officials, who have launched an inquiry. Police continue to argue that she died of natural causes, but her family believes that she was exposed to beating and torture.

Last month, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the situation in Iran was critical. He said the rising number of deaths from demonstrations, including those of two children, showed the critical situation across Iran.