Iran to execute five post-election protesters News
Iran to execute five post-election protesters

[JURIST] An Iranian court has sentenced five people to death for their roles in protests that took place after this summer's disputed elections [JURIST news archive], according to state media Tuesday. Another 81 people have been sentenced to prison [Al-Jazeera report] for up to 15 years. The names of those sentenced to death are unknown, and all have been sentenced for their cooperation with terrorist groups. All appeals have already been considered [BBC report] and the verdict as handed down by the court is final.

Iran began trying some of the arrested protesters [JURIST report] in August. The protesters on trial were charged with crimes [PressTV report] ranging from vandalism and organizing riots to sending pictures of the protests to "enemy media." In July Iranian officials announced [JURIST report] a plan to either press charges against or release most of those held after the riots. The government released 140 of those initially detained and closed one prison holding protesters after Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] and other groups alleged that some protesters were beaten, deprived of sleep, and threatened with torture in an effort to force false confessions [report text; JURIST report]. Also in July, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran (ICHRI) [advocacy website] reported that the number of deaths that occurred at the protests exceeded government reports [press release; JURIST report].