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Iranian protestor Mohsen Shekari was executed on Thursday, December 8, 2022, for his involvement in the ongoing protest against the tragic death of Mahsa Amini. The execution comes a month after a Revolutionary Court found Mohsen Shekari guilty on November 1, for blocking the main road during a protest in Tehran and allegedly wounding a paramilitary force officer with a weapon in September.
Mohsen Shekari, 23, was the first protestor to be executed in the nationwide dissent that erupted after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was arrested and beaten by "morality police'' for "violating" hijab laws in Iran in mid-September.
As per the BBC, Shekari was arrested on September 25 for blocking Tehran's Sattar Khan Street and injuring an individual from a paramilitary force called Basij Resistance with a machete. The paramilitary force was deployed to end the protest in the area at the time.
Mohsen Shekari was convicted of "enmity against God"
As per the BBC, citing the judiciary's Mizan news agency, on November 1, 2022, Mohsen Shekari was convicted of "moharebeh" (enmity against God) after the Revolutionary Court determined that he drew a weapon "with the intention of killing, causing terror and disturbing the order and security of society."
The court carried out the first execution after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict on November 20, after Shekari appealed the judgment issued by the Revolutionary Court. It should be noted that so far, ten other people have been sentenced to death by Revolutionary Courts on similar charges after they were deemed dissenters who participated in nationwide protests.
Shekari's execution has sparked worldwide condemnation, including from the director of the Norway-based group Iran Human Rights, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, who described the court proceedings as a "show trial" and tweeted:
Iranian journalist and activist, Masih Alinejad, also rebuked the government’s actions saying:
“Mohsen gave his life for freedom. He wanted a normal life. One more brave soul killed by this b****y regime.”
The protests against the Iranian government erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini, who was detained by morality police on September 13, 2022, for allegedly “improperly” wearing a hijab. Amini died after she was beaten by the police while in custody.
The protests led by women thwarted the country’s archaic laws established in the 1970s that required them to wear hijabs in public. As per the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the protests, in which at least 475 protesters have been killed and 18,240 have been detained, have spread to 160 cities in all 31 of the country's provinces, threatening to topple the Iranian government.
