On the morning of 16 August, Shahram Sadeghi was executed in Iran; he had been accused of crimes against state security and of deliberately running over law enforcement officers during protests in the city of Karaj on 8 January.
According to the Iranian authorities, Sadeghi was carrying out ‘operational activities’ on behalf of Israel, the US and other organisations that Iran considers hostile. He was also accused of collaborating with Israel and other hostile countries against Iran’s national security and interests.
The Iranian judicial authorities claim that during the protests, Sadeghi deliberately rammed law enforcement officers near the Golzar junction in a Kia Pride. As a result, according to official figures, seven law enforcement officers were injured. One of them was reportedly in a coma for three months.
Following the incident, according to the authorities, Sadeghi set his car alight and fled. He was subsequently identified and arrested.
It is not yet possible to independently verify the Iranian authorities’ allegations or the circumstances surrounding Sadegi’s prosecution.
Human rights organisations state that, for many years, the Iranian authorities have been using charges – in particular, espionage, endangering national security, armed rebellion, ‘enmity against God’ and ‘spreading corruption on earth’ – to suppress protests and persecute opponents.
According to human rights activists, such charges are regularly levelled against protesters, dissidents and political prisoners, portraying them as a threat to national security and using this as grounds for death sentences.
According to the human rights group, at least 916 people have been executed in Iran since the start of 2026.
Sadeqi’s execution took place against the backdrop of large-scale protests that swept across Iran in January.
In July, Iran executed at least 71 people, including six who had taken part in mass anti-government protests at the start of the year, according to data from Iran Human Rights (IHR), a human rights organisation based in Norway.
In a report published on 6 August, IHR noted that this figure brings the total number of executions recorded in the first seven months of this year to at least 444. According to the organisation, a further hundred people in Iran face the death penalty.
“We are deeply concerned that the ongoing military conflict between the Islamic Republic, the United States and Israel will be used to step up executions under the pretext of national security,” said Mahmoud Amiri-Mogaddam, director of the IHR.
He added: “The international community must respond with stronger and more coordinated pressure against the Islamic Republic’s use of the death penalty.”
Since the start of the war with the United States and Israel on 28 February, Iran has seen a rise in the number of executions of those whom human rights groups consider to be political prisoners – ranging from demonstrators to alleged members of banned groups and individuals convicted of espionage.
Activists say the rise in executions is an attempt by the authorities to instil fear among Iranians and prevent a repeat of the nationwide demonstrations that rocked Iran in January.