Public hangings provoke defiance in Isfahan Public hangings spark fresh outrageA former United Nations prosecutor has accused Iran's regime of carrying out "murders" under the guise of justice, saying its latest wave of executions forms part of an ongoing crime against humanity. Professor Payam Akhavan made the explosive accusation after two protesters were publicly hanged in Isfahan this week, arguing the executions cannot be separated from the bloody crackdown that followed January's nationwide uprising. "There is no doubt that we have a crime against humanity," Akhavan told Iran International's Eye for Iran programme. 'These are killings, not justice'Iran publicly executed Amirhossein Safari and Abolfazl Sepahi in Isfahan's Alikhani Square after accusing them of killing four police officers during unrest on January 8. The pair were among several defendants sentenced to death in the case. Two others have already been executed behind prison walls, while another eight reportedly remain on death row. Iran's judiciary insists the convictions were lawful, but international rights organisations have raised serious concerns over the trials, citing restricted access to defence lawyers, the exclusion of potentially exonerating evidence and the use of televised confessions that may have been extracted under coercion. Akhavan argued that executions carried out without genuine due process cannot be considered lawful. "A death sentence carried out without due process becomes a form of murder or extrajudicial execution," he said. He accused Iran of relying on vague national security offences such as moharebeh—or "waging war against God"—to silence political opponents through Revolutionary Courts that he said cannot be regarded as independent or impartial. Defiance instead of fearRather than intimidating the public, the executions triggered one of the boldest displays of resistance seen in months. Hundreds gathered near the execution site before dawn, with videos showing crowds chanting "Shame on you" as police guarded the gallows. Witnesses said security forces eventually dispersed demonstrators using tear gas, Tasers and warning shots. At the same time, opposition to the death penalty surged online, while around 1,500 prisoners on death row at Ghezel Hesar Prison reportedly joined a hunger strike under the banner of the "No to Executions" campaign. The United Nations had urged Tehran to halt the executions just one day earlier, warning that forced confessions should never be admitted as evidence and condemning the public broadcasting of confessions before trial. 'Continuation of January's massacre'Akhavan believes the executions are simply the latest phase of the regime's campaign against dissent. "What we're witnessing today is not an isolated phenomenon," he said. "It is a continuation of the same criminal enterprise." He pointed to allegations that authorities imposed internet blackouts, concealed deaths by pressuring hospitals to falsify records, and secretly transported bodies for burial following January's crackdown. He also cited reports that Iranian forces deployed snipers, heavy machine guns and armour-piercing ammunition against unarmed demonstrators. According to Akhavan, statements by senior officials portraying protesters as foreign agents or enemies of God effectively gave security forces permission to kill. Could Iran face extermination charges?Akhavan argues the scale of the killings could amount not only to crimes against humanity but also to the more specific offence of extermination under the Rome Statute. Unlike genocide, extermination does not require proof that victims belonged to a protected ethnic or religious group. Instead, prosecutors must demonstrate large-scale or systematic killings directed against civilians. The UN's Independent International Fact-Finding Mission has already concluded that earlier repression surrounding the Woman, Life, Freedom protests amounted to crimes against humanity and continues to investigate the January 2026 crackdown. Meanwhile, Amnesty International says Iran carried out at least 2,159 executions during 2025, including dozens linked to political protest cases. For Akhavan, the return of cranes serving as public gallows is intended to send one unmistakable message. "Under cover of war, they are escalating executions in order to create fear," he said. But he argued the regime's greatest threat is not military pressure from abroad. "The biggest threat to the Islamic Republic is not the United States or Israel," Akhavan said. "It is the Iranian people themselves." SOURCE
