Iran sentences four protest detainees to death

Hengaw – Monday, April 13, 2026

Iran’s judiciary has sentenced four people detained during the January 2026 protests to death and handed prison terms to other defendant in the same case.

According to information obtained by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, issued the rulings against five defendants.

Mohammadreza Majidi Asl, Bita Hemmati, Behrouz Zamani Nejad and Kourosh Zamani Nejad were sentenced to death on charges of “operational cooperation with hostile state of United States and other groups.”

In addition to the death sentences, the four were each given five years in prison on charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” and were ordered to forfeit all their assets.

A fifth defendant, Amir Hemmati, was sentenced to five years in prison for “assembly and collusion” and an additional eight months for “propaganda against the state.”

Majidi Asl and Bita Hemmati are a couple living in Tehran, while Amir Hemmati is a relative. Behrouz and Kourosh Zamani Nejad, who are also related, were arrested at the same time in a residential building.

The court cited participation in protests on Jan. 8 and 9, chanting slogans, destruction of public property and unverified allegations such as throwing incendiary materials and using unidentified weapons as evidence against the defendants.

No clear or individualized evidence was presented in the verdict regarding each defendant’s role.

The defendants were subjected to severe physical and psychological pressure during interrogations to extract forced confessions and were denied access to legal counsel and fair trial standards.