Iran hangs two men for links to “separatists”
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Iranian authorities on Thursday executed two men by hanging after convicting them of armed rebellion and membership in “terrorist separatist groups,” in what was seen as the latest wave of executions during the Middle East war.
Since the outbreak of the US-‘Israeli’ war against the Islamic Republic on February 28, Iran has intensified the implementation of death sentences against individuals convicted over anti-government protests that took place earlier this year.
Iran’s judiciary said the two men executed Thursday were involved in armed attacks against security forces and assassination plots in western Iran.
“Mizan Online,” the judiciary’s news outlet, reported that “Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour were hanged for belonging to separatist terrorist groups, forming a group aimed at undermining the country’s security, armed rebellion through the formation of criminal gangs, opening fire, and carrying out assassination attempts.”
It was not immediately clear when the two were arrested, but the judiciary said they had received training to become “leaders of riots.”
Iran carries out the second-highest number of executions in the world after China, according to human rights organizations.
Last year, Iran executed at least 1,639 people by hanging, according to Iran Human Rights, which has documented at least 194 executions so far in 2026.
On Wednesday, Iranian authorities also hanged a man in his early thirties convicted of spying for ‘Israeli’ intelligence.
He was the sixth person executed on such charges since the outbreak of the Middle East war.
