Overview
- Iranian state media and the judiciary confirmed on Tuesday that Amirhossein Maleki and Amirhossein Ebrahimi were executed in Isfahan after convictions tied to the January Alikhani Square protests.
- The two men were part of a joint Alikhani Square trial that originally sentenced 12 young defendants to death; rights monitors say seven people in the case have already been executed and several co‑defendants remain at risk.
- Human‑rights groups report the case featured torture, mock executions, forced confessions, restricted access to lawyers and closed mass trials, and they say many defendants were not formally charged with murder.
- Iranian authorities say the convictions were upheld by the Supreme Court and cite capital charges such as 'waging war against God' and 'corruption on earth' linked to the deaths of four security personnel, a claim disputed by defense lawyers.
- NGOs tracking the unrest say these hangings are part of a wider spike in protest‑related executions in 2026, a pattern that has included public hangings in Alikhani Square and which rights groups warn aims to spread fear and silence dissent.