Two men charged with assaulting and robbing a victim on the streets of Tehran were hanged today, January 20, in public.
The two were arrested after a video of the assault and robbery was posted on YouTube last month and later aired on public TV in Iran, triggering widespread outrage. The video showed then robbing and assaulting a pedestrian with a machete in broad daylight.
Four people were arrested in connection with the crime. Two were accused of “enmity against God” which covers a range of offences from anti-government activities to armed robbery. Following the incident, the head of Iran’s judiciary announced that the use of cold weapons and firearms in a robbery are considered equal in the eyes of the law.
The two other individuals were each sentenced to 10 years in jail, five years in exile and 74 lashes.
The head of the judiciary confirmed that there are “alternative punishments” for the crime committed by these individuals but the judiciary had decided to give the highest sentence in order to deter similar actions in the future.
The two were hanged in public in Tehran Artists’ Park, which according to the media is the location where the crime reportedly took place.
