Overview
- Iran’s judiciary outlet Mizan reported that Hamidreza Esmailpour was hanged on January 28 after being found guilty of passing information to Israel’s Mossad.
- Officials said he was arrested in April 2025 and accused of aiding planned sabotage of missile sites and transporting vehicles later found to contain explosives.
- State broadcaster Press TV said the Supreme Court upheld the verdict and cited alleged cryptocurrency payments, online recruitment, and encrypted communications with a handler.
- Rights groups say the execution continues a post-June trend, reporting at least a dozen espionage-related executions, including the January 7 case of Ali Ardestani.
- Monitors warn protest detainees from late-December unrest could face capital charges, as Iran Human Rights counted about 1,500 executions in 2025 and authorities denied President Trump’s claim of halting hundreds of planned executions.