Iran Hangs 19-Year-Old Wrestling Champion Amid First Executions Tied to January Protests

Iran publicly hanged three men, including a 19-year-old wrestling champion, Saleh Mohammadi, in what appear to be the first official executions tied to the anti-regime protests that erupted earlier this year.Iranian state news agencies announced the executions Thursday, claiming the three men were involved in the killing of two police officers during protests in January and had acted in support of the “Zionist regime and the United States.” The regime designated them as “Moharebeh” — a label applied to protesters that translates to “enemies of God” and carries a capital sentence.The Hengaw human rights organization reported that Mohammadi and his fellow detainees, Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi, were convicted “following grossly unfair trials, marked by denial of access to independent legal counsel and reliance on coerced confessions.” The group said the men were found guilty on the basis of confessions extracted through severe torture and that no witnesses or evidence placed them at the scene.The executions came just a day after the regime put to death a Swedish-Iranian national accused of collaborating with Israel.Mohammadi, a decorated freestyle wrestler who won bronze at the Saytiyev International Cup in Russia in 2024, denied the charges in court and maintained that his confession had been obtained under torture. Members of Iran’s wrestling community rallied to his defense, attesting that he had no history of violence. He reportedly suffered a hand fracture from physical abuse while in custody.In January, the State Department had urged the regime to release Mohammadi, posting on its official X account in Farsi that it was “deeply concerned” by reports of his imminent execution and condemning the regime for “massacring young people and destroying Iran’s future.” It called on Iran to halt the execution of Mohammadi and “all those sentenced to death for exercising their fundamental rights.”Several other athletes and coaches face the risk of execution after being arrested during the wave of protests. Among them, according to Iranian news reports, are a soccer player, Mohammad Hossein Hosseini; a water polo goalkeeper, Ali Pishevarzadeh; a marathon runner, Niloufar Pas; a kickboxing champion, Benjamin Naghdi; a teenage footballer, Abolfazl Dokht; and a boxer, Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.Supporters of the Iranian protesters shared tributes to the three men following the news of their deaths. Iranian-American journalist and women’s rights advocate Masih Alinejad called on the athletic community to “stand with Iranian athletes who are being silenced, imprisoned, and executed simply for raising their voices.” She added: “This is not just about sports. This is about human dignity.”Senator John Fetterman condemned the regime for executing Mohammadi for “demanding democracy” and declared, “I stand with his memory and the thousands of other young Iranians.” A human rights activist and Iranian combat athlete, Nimar Far, faulted the international sporting community for failing to do enough to save Mohammadi. In a statement to Fox News, Mr. Far said the International Olympic Committee and United World Wrestling “should have intervened forcefully with public ultimatums, threatening immediate suspension” of Iran’s Olympic committee “if the killing proceeded rather than relying on ineffective quiet diplomacy.”

Iran Hangs 19-Year-Old Wrestling Champion Amid First Executions Tied to January Protests

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