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Amnesty International on Tuesday called for an immediate halt to the planned execution of 19-year-old Iranian protester Amirhossein Ghaderzadeh, whose death sentence is due to be carried out on Wednesday.
“Iranian authorities must immediately halt any plans to execute 19-year-old Amirhossein Ghaderzadeh, who has been detained since 9 January for taking part in protests in Rasht, Gilan province, and stop weaponizing the death penalty against protesters,” Amnesty said in a post on X.
“According to an informed source, the authorities told him during a court session on 17 January that he is accused of ‘betraying his country’ and sentenced to ‘death by hanging’. The authorities have informed his family that his execution is scheduled for 21 January,” the group added.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar has urged the European Union to formally designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, citing its role in crushing protests and sponsoring terror across the region.
“Designate Iran's Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization!” the foreign minister wrote on X on Tuesday, responding to a post from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“You know very well what their role is in the murderous repression of the civilian protest in Iran, as well as in spreading terror in the Middle East and beyond,” Sa’ar added.
The European Union is proposing new sanctions on Iran, including a ban on additional exports of drone and missile technologies, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday.
She added that, together with the EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, the Commission is preparing further human rights related measures.
“We are also preparing new sanctions in response to the regime’s continued and brutal repression of protesters,” she said.
“Iran’s authorities try to shut down the internet because they are afraid,” the US State Department’s Near Eastern Affairs bureau said in a post on X on Monday, as it defended Washington’s sanctions policy.
The bureau said US sanctions target Iran’s government, not its people, and include exemptions to help Iranians stay connected online.
It said General License D-2 allows companies to provide internet and communications services to Iranians.
“We will keep supporting access,” it added.
A serving official at Iran’s Interior Ministry has defected from his post and joined the protests, urging US President Donald Trump to intervene against the Islamic Republic, he said in a message to Iran International.
The official said in an audio message recorded on Sunday that he stayed away from work after a call by exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi.
Iran International is withholding the official’s identity for security reasons.
The official said he took part in recent demonstrations and witnessed the Islamic Republic’s use of live fire against protesters.
He said protesters were facing armed forces with no means to defend themselves. “People have done everything they can and made their demands clear,” he said, adding that security forces were deliberately targeting demonstrators with live ammunition.
The official appealed directly to Trump to act, saying many Iranians were waiting for US intervention. “People are waiting for Trump, and if he does nothing, widespread hatred toward him will emerge among Iranians,” he said.
He accused security forces of using G3 rifles against civilians and warned that patience inside Iran was running out.
The official also described what he called de facto martial law in several provinces, with traffic tightly controlled, motorcycle units deployed, and armored vehicles patrolling streets to prevent gatherings.
According to the official, the scale of protests on January 8 and 9 was unprecedented in the history of the Islamic Republic, prompting authorities to restrict internet access and block the flow of images and videos.
“The Islamic Republic is ruthless and will do anything,” he said, adding that agents were operating openly with weapons in the streets.
The Interior Ministry official said he believed Trump would ultimately act but stressed that expectations among protesters were growing as violence continued.
Trump has previously warned Tehran that if Iranian authorities fired on protesters, the United States would respond in kind. Days later, he said he had been told executions in Iran were halted following his warning.
In his most recent comments to Politico, Trump spoke openly about the need for leadership change in Iran, calling Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei “a sick man.”
