‘Deplorable’: Trump tweets in Farsi to condemn impending Iran executions of three protesters

The Iranian government has been accused of disrupting internet access in the country of 80 million in an effort to clamp down on those expressing dismay with the executions on Twitter. The Iranian judiciary announced Tuesday that the Supreme Court of Iran is moving forward with the death sentences of Amirhossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi.

The three young men were arrested during last November’s protests. After Moradi was arrested in April along with Ali Younesi, another student protester, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus told the Washington Examiner that they faced “bogus” charges.

“The Iranian regime is focused on harassing rather than empowering the most talented Iranians,” Ortagus said. “A month ago, the regime arrested two talented students, Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi, on bogus charges. We join the countless Iranians and others around the world in calling for their release.”

Trump’s tweet comes a day after Iran’s judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili announced that his country had executed Reza Asgari, a former defense ministry employee who Iran claims passed along information to the CIA. The CIA declined to comment on the report when contacted by the Washington Examiner.

This is not the first time that the president has tweeted in Farsi.

Trump tweeted encouragement for demonstrators after protests enveloped Iran following the January shoot-down of a Ukrainian airliner and the drone strike that killed Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani.

Ortagus also tweeted about the three protesters last month.

“The U.S. strongly condemns Iran’s decision to sentence Amir-Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi and Mohammad Rajabi to death. These protesters were reportedly beaten, denied lawyers, and coerced into false confessions. Iran must respect human rights and stop these executions,” she said.