Iran sentences five rioters convicted of killing Basij member to death

December 6, 2022 - 21:43

TEHRAN – Iran’s Judiciary announced Tuesday that it has sentenced five individuals convicted of killing Basij member Rohullah Ajamiyan in Karaj to the death penalty while 11 others were sentenced to long prison terms.

The sentences were announced by the Judiciary’s Media Center, according to IRNA.

Ajamiyan lost his life on October 3 during the Arbaeen ceremony of Hadis Najafi, who herself had been killed forty days earlier during the unrest.

According to IRNA, 16 individuals have been put to trial in connection with the Ajamiyan case of which three were below the age of 18. 

The five convicts were accused of corruption on earth and received death sentences while the remaining 11, including those below the age of 18, were sentenced to long prison terms of up to 25 years, IRNA reported. 

IRNA said the sentences are not final and can be appealed at the Supreme Court. 

Over the last two months, Iran has been gripped by a wave of unrest that erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini. The early protests turned into riots that killed nearly 200 people across Iran, according to the official tally.

The State Security Council of Iran under the leadership of the Interior Ministry released a statement on Saturday putting the number of people killed in the recent riots at 200.

It classified those killed as defenders of security, people who fell victim to terrorist acts, innocent persons who were victims of false flag killings, innocent persons who lost their lives in the chaotic security situation, rioters, and armed anti-revolution elements aligned with separatist groups.

“Defenders of security” refers to security forces.

In the riots, which started after the September 16 death of Mahsa Amini, government, public and private properties suffered trillions of tomans in damages, it added.