Majidreza Rahnavard, 23, Publicly Hanged in Iran

Majidreza Rahnavard, a 23-year-old who was put to death in Iran for participating in anti-government protests, gave instructions before his passing, asking that no one mourn him or recite the Quran at his burial. On Monday, he was publicly hanged in Mashhad.

Four days before to Rahnavard’s execution, Mohsen Shekari, also 23, was put to death for injuring a member of the security forces. It was the first instance of the death penalty being applied to a protester, in defiance of widespread condemnation.

Rahnavard was seen in a video today expressing what were likely his final intentions. Rahnavard can be seen speaking to the camera while being blindfolded and surrounded by two masked security personnel.

“I don’t want anyone to mourn upon my grave. I don’t want them to read Quran or pray. Just celebrate and play celebrating music,” read the translation supers.

Women’s rights campaigner and Belgian parliamentarian Darya Safai tweeted:

According to the judiciary’s Mizan Online news outlet, Rahnavard was given a death sentence by a court for fatally stabbing two members of the security forces and injuring four others.

Rahnavard “was sentenced to death based on coerced confessions during a sham trial,” as per Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of the Oslo-based organisation Iran Human Rights.

AFP quoted him saying, “The public execution of a young protester, 23 days after his arrest, is another serious crime committed by the Islamic republic’s leaders.”

His family was only told of the execution after it had already taken place, according to the protest monitoring social media channel 1500tasvir, reported AFP. It uploaded images of the condemned man and his mother’s final meeting and said she had fled before realising he was soon to die.

The mother of #MajidRezaRahnavard was allowed to visit him, and they made no mention of his impending execution. She went with a smile on her face and hoped for her son’s quick release.
She arrived this morning as her son’s killers were burying his body by themselves.

The regime has been rattled by the anti-government demonstrations for months. Iran refers to the demonstrations as “riots” and claims that its adversaries outside supported them.

The demonstrations began four months ago after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian who had been detained by the morality police for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s stringent clothing code for women, died in detention.

More on Iran