Death sentence for Iranian accused of killing 7 at protests

An Iranian court has ordered the execution of a man accused of killing seven people during nationwide protests last year, the judiciary said Friday.

Abbas Kurkuri was accused of using a military weapon to fatally shoot seven people in Izeh, in Khuzestan province, in November, and charged with the capital crimes of "moharebeh", or "war against God" and "corruption on earth", the judiciary's Mizan Online news website reported.

The Islamic republic witnessed several months of civil unrest following the September 16 death of Kurdish Iranian Amini, 22, after her arrest for allegedly flouting Iran's strict dress code for women.

Hundreds of people were killed, including dozens of security personnel, and thousands were arrested in connection with what officials labelled "riots" fomented Iran's enemies.

Kurkuri's sentence can be appealed in the supreme court, Mizan added.

At the burial of one of the shooting victims, identified as 10-year-old Kian Pirfalak, the boy's mother reportedly blamed security forces for killing her son.

At the time of his death, officials insisted the boy was killed in a "terrorist" attack carried out by an extremist group. 

The judiciary's website added that Kurkuri had "accepted the charges" and confessed to being "under the influence of social media".

Such confessions are frequently condemned by rights groups based outside of Iran as "forced", arguing that they are often obtained under duress.

Iranian authorities have so far executed four people and issued death sentences for around 20 others in connection to the mostly women-led protest movement.

 

AFP