As the United States prepares to sign a ceasefire memorandum with Iran's Islamic Republic, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has executed two demonstrators detained in connection with the January 8 protests — an uprising during whichregime forces deployed machine guns, killing between 12,000 and 30,000 people.
Javad Zamani and Abolfazl Saedi, accused of causing property damageduring the protests, were put to death by Iranian authorities on June 16, 2026.
Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) has revealed that state media broadcast coerced confessions ahead of announcing the executions. Many detainees face fabricated charges and are rushed through sham court proceedings, where they frequently "confess" under duress.
Since March 19, at least 20 protesters have been executed in relation to the January 2026 unrest, which first erupted on December 28, 2025.
Iranian authorities responded with what human rights organisations have described as an unprecedented and deadly crackdown, severing all internet access from January 8, 2026. Security forces deployed live ammunition and other prohibited weapons against protesters, resulting in mass casualties and severe injuries.
Verified video footage and eyewitness accounts reveal that security forces positioned in streets and on rooftops — including atop homes, mosques and police buildings — repeatedly discharged rifles and shotguns loaded with metal pellets at demonstrators, frequently targeting their heads and chests. Those engaged in the crackdown included the IRGC and its Basij units, multiple branches of Iran's police force (known by the Persian acronym FARAJA), as well as plainclothes operatives.
Authorities conducted large-scale killings of protesters, particularly on Jan. 8 and 9, when the death toll soared into the thousands. Amnesty International research indicates that January 2026 represented the bloodiest period of repression by Iranian authorities in decades.
In the wake of the violence, hundreds were detained, and many remain facing execution. Condemning the death sentences, IHRNGO called upon the international community to take coordinated action to halt executions in Iran.
IHRNGO Director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said the two executions, like others, followed proceedings that "did not meet even the minimum standards of a fair trial" and were designed to intimidate the public and discourage future protests. He went on to say that with an agreement now in place to bring the war to a close, governments professing to champion human rights - particularly those across Europe - ought to prioritise Iran's human rights record and an end to executions as paramount concerns.
He urged that an immediate halt to the death penalty should form a fundamental condition of any normalisation of ties between theEuropean Unionand the Islamic Republic.
Source: Daily Express :: World Feed
