In the space of a week, Iranian courts sentenced three protesters to death, deepening fears that the state is using war and regional tension to intensify domestic repression.
Iranian courts have sentenced three protesters and political prisoners to death in separate cases over the past week, amid an escalating wave of executions and intensified security measures across the country. Kamal Khan-Babaei and Vahid Khan-Sanami, both arrested in connection with the nationwide January 2026 uprising, have been sentenced to death on charges of “moharebeh,” or “enmity against God” — a capital charge in Iran often used to frame political dissent or protest-related acts as threats to national and religious security. Arghavan Fallahi, a 25-year-old political prisoner previously arrested during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” uprising, has also been sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Court in Tehran.
The new death sentences come as human rights activists warn that the Islamic Republic is using the atmosphere created by war and regional tension to expand internal repression. According to published reports, since the start of military confrontations involving Iran, Israel, and the United States, more than 30 people have been executed in Iran, at least 16 of them detainees from the January 2026 uprising. Amnesty International has also described Iran’s human rights situation as “critical,” pointing to arbitrary arrests, sweeping internet restrictions, a tightened security atmosphere, and the execution of protesters. According to Amnesty’s annual report, the Islamic Republic executed at least 2,159 people in 2025 — the highest recorded number in Iran since 1981.
Kamal Khan-Babaei: Death Sentence Over Alleged Damage to Public Property
Kamal Khan-Babaei, one of those arrested during the nationwide January 2026 uprising, has been sentenced to death by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Qazvin, presided over by Judge Asadi. He was convicted of “moharebeh” through alleged participation in the destruction of public property.
According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, HRANA, one of the specific accusations raised against Khan-Babaei was breaking two cameras. A source close to his family said this allegation has intensified concerns over the judicial handling of the case and the proportionality of the charge.
Khan-Babaei was arrested by Intelligence Ministry agents on January 15, 2026. He spent around ten days in a security detention facility, where he was reportedly interrogated and beaten in an attempt to extract forced confessions. After the interrogations ended, he was transferred to Choubindar Prison in Qazvin, where he remains detained.
Khan-Babaei was born in 1994. He is married, has one child, and is from Qazvin. After his lawyers objected to the ruling, his case was sent to the Supreme Court for review.
His case is one of the latest examples of the Iranian judiciary’s use of “moharebeh” charges against protesters. In practice, such charges allow courts to frame protest-related acts, including alleged damage to property, as capital offenses.
Vahid Khan-Sanami: Sentenced by Judge Salavati’s Court
Vahid Khan-Sanami, another detainee from the nationwide January 2026 uprising, has also been sentenced to death on the charge of “moharebeh.” His sentence was issued by Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, presided over by Judge Abolqasem Salavati, a judge long associated with harsh sentences in political and security cases.
According to HRANA, a source close to Khan-Sanami’s family confirmed that his trial was held in April 2026, and that the court ultimately sentenced him to death.
Khan-Sanami was arrested in March 2026 in connection with the January 2026 uprising. Since his arrest, he has been held in Greater Tehran Prison.
The January 2026 uprising began on December 28, 2025, with strikes and gatherings by bazaar merchants and shopkeepers in Tehran. It quickly spread to other cities and drew in students, workers, and ordinary citizens. The uprising became one of the largest waves of unrest in recent years. During the state crackdown, especially on January 8 and 9, thousands were killed or wounded, and tens of thousands were arrested or summoned — a level of state violence described by rights activists as historically unprecedented, even within the Islamic Republic’s bloody record of repression.
Human rights defenders have warned that the authorities are now pursuing protest cases in a climate of heightened militarization, using capital charges to intimidate society and prevent new waves of dissent.
Arghavan Fallahi: A Woman Political Prisoner Sentenced to Death
Arghavan Fallahi, a 25-year-old political prisoner, was sentenced to death by Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, also presided over by Judge Salavati. The sentence was reportedly issued on July 1, 2026, and communicated to her through her defense lawyer.
Fallahi was arrested by security forces on January 25, 2025, in the city of Parand and transferred to Ward 241 of Evin Prison, which is controlled by the Judiciary’s Protection and Intelligence Center. She spent around five months in solitary confinement under interrogation and was subjected to physical and psychological pressure during that period.
Afterward, she was transferred to Fashafouyeh Prison, also known as Greater Tehran Prison, where she was again held for a period in solitary confinement. She was later moved to the women’s ward of Evin Prison.
Fallahi had previously been arrested during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” uprising. At the time of her first arrest, on November 4, 2022, she was 22 years old. She was detained along with her father, Nasrollah Fallahi, and her brother, Ardavan Fallahi.
Nasrollah Fallahi, who had also been imprisoned in the 1980s, is currently serving a five-year sentence in Ward 7 of Evin Prison.
Arghavan Fallahi’s case highlights the gendered and intergenerational dimensions of repression in Iran. Her prosecution links the legacy of the 2022 uprising to the current postwar security climate, in which Revolutionary Courts continue to impose death sentences on political prisoners and protest-linked defendants.
A Broader Pattern of Capital Punishment and Political Intimidation
The three death sentences are not isolated. They form part of a wider pattern in which the Islamic Republic has relied on executions, capital charges, and security trials to reassert control during moments of crisis.
The use of “moharebeh” against protesters has become one of the judiciary’s most severe tools of repression. By treating protest-related accusations as crimes punishable by death, the state turns social dissent into a matter of national security and religious criminality.
The timing of these sentences is also significant. Rights activists say the authorities have taken advantage of war, regional instability, internet restrictions, and the militarization of public space to accelerate prosecutions and executions. The result is a judicial climate in which protesters face the possibility of death sentences after proceedings marked by forced confessions, solitary confinement, restricted access to lawyers, and security pressure on families.
Together, the cases of Kamal Khan-Babaei, Vahid Khan-Sanami, and Arghavan Fallahi show how the Islamic Republic is extending the machinery of repression across different protest cycles: from the “Woman, Life, Freedom” uprising of 2022 to the January 2026 uprising. The death penalty is being used not only as punishment, but as a warning to society.
For families, prisoners, and human rights defenders, the immediate concern is urgent: these sentences must be overturned before they become part of Iran’s expanding execution toll.
