Iran’s judiciary announced it has executed three men the country arrested and detained after the massive nationwide protests in the country in December and January. The three men, including an Iranian national wrestling team member, were reportedly convicted of killing two police officers during the national demonstrations. Their sentences were recently upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court, according to Iranian state media.
The executions occurred in the city of Qom, Iran, a notably religious municipality in the country, according to Reuters. In addition to the murder charges, the executed men were found guilty of violating Iran’s Islamic penal code, violation of “waging war against God,” known as Moharebeh. Accusations associated with this violation include “carrying out acts it said were in favor of Israel and the United States.”
Iranian officials accused Mehdi Ghasemi, Saleh Mohammadi, and Saeed Davoudi of using swords and knives to attack police officers attempting to subdue protests in Iran on January 8, according to the news publication Iran International. Two police officers were allegedly killed as a result. The accusations that Ghasemi, Mohammadi, and Davoudi were associated with the U.S. and Israel are a frequent accusation Iranian regime officials make against dissidents, according to multiple reports.
Mohammadi was 19 years old and on Iran’s national wrestling team. He was originally arrested on January 15. The U.S. State Department appealed to Iran’s government not to execute him in a social media post in January.
“The United States is deeply concerned by reports that 19-year-old wrestling champion Saleh Mohammadi is facing imminent execution,” said a translated post on the U.S. State Department’s Virtual Embassy Iran X account on Jan. 29. “The regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran is massacring young people and destroying Iran’s future.”
ایالات متحده از گزارشهایی درباره صالح محمدی، قهرمان ۱۹ ساله کشتی، که با اعدام قریبالوقوع روبهرو است، عمیقاً نگران است. رژیم جمهوری اسلامی ایران، جوانان را قتلعام و آینده ایران را ویران میکند.
— USAbehFarsi (@USABehFarsi) January 29, 2026
ما از رژیم ایران میخواهیم اجرای حکم اعدام صالح محمدی و تمامی افرادی را که برای… pic.twitter.com/lL324xWQWZ
“We call on the Iranian regime to halt the execution of Saleh Mohammadi and all those sentenced to death for exercising their fundamental rights.”
News of Iran’s crackdown during the country’s massive protests sparked outrage throughout the world. In January, Iran’s prosecutor general, Mohammad Movahedi, declared the protests were “squashed” and that the “sedition is over now.” Iranian state media listed the number of fatalities from the protests at over 3100 people. However, the NGO Human Rights Activists in Iran suggested the number of fatalities was much higher, claiming over 4900 protesters were killed and nearly 26,000 arrested. Other assessments claim the number of people killed was between 12,000 and 20,000.
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Earlier this week, Gholam-Hossein, the chief justice of Iran’s Supreme Court, warned against protesting the regime, categorizing anyone who participates in such efforts as “collaborators with the enemy.”
“We warn all elements who intend to threaten public security that if they act, they will face firm legal action, and there will be no leniency,” said Mohseni-Ejei.
