Abdollahzadeh execution followed torture-tainted confession, rights group says

Iran’s internet blackout entered its 65th consecutive day on Sunday, with the public broadly cut off from the outside world for 1536 hours, NetBlocks said.

“While whitelisting and privileged access are in place for a select few, the general public remain cut off from the outside world,” said the internet monitor in a post on X.

Born in 1997 in Urmia, he had been arrested on October 22, 2022 during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests.

The judiciary said Abdollahzadeh had been sentenced to death on charges of “corruption on earth” in connection with the killing of Abbas Fatemiyeh, described as a “volunteer force” member in Urmia.

Mizan, the judiciary’s media outlet, said the conviction was based on confessions, witness testimony, images and security reports, adding that the Supreme Court upheld the sentence.

He was executed after previously saying in a message from prison, “From the very first day of my arrest, they extracted confessions from me through torture and threats, all of which were false.”

Rights groups cite coercion concerns

Rights organizations also said the case relied on forced confessions obtained under pressure and lacked fair trial guarantees.

The Kurdistan Human Rights Network said Abdollahzadeh was interrogated for 38 days without access to a lawyer or family contact and faced physical and psychological pressure.

The group added he denied the charges and requested mobile location data to challenge his presence at the scene.

Timeline and broader executions

Abdollahzadeh was arrested at his workplace during nationwide protests and later sentenced to death by a revolutionary court in Urmia in September 2024.

Rights groups reported he was moved to solitary confinement days before the execution following a dispute with a prison official.

The execution came after two other men were hanged in the same prison a day earlier on charges of spying for Israel, with rights groups raising concerns over fast-track proceedings and lack of due process.

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  Two more men hanged in Iran as authorities ramp up executions

UN human rights chief Volker Turk said this week that at least 21 people have been executed and more than 4,000 arrested on national security charges since the latest conflict in February, warning that rights in Iran continue to face severe restrictions.

"I am appalled that – on top of the already severe impacts of the conflict – the rights of the Iranian people continue to be stripped from them by the authorities, in harsh and brutal ways," Turk said.

Iran executed political prisoner Mehrab Abdollahzadeh, who had been arrested during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement, at Urmia prison on Sunday morning, the judiciary’s Mizan News said.

Iran also executed two more men on Saturday after the Supreme Court upheld their death sentences for spying for Israel and cooperating with the Mossad intelligence service.

The hangings come as authorities continue to carry out daily executions, taking place against the backdrop of a fragile ceasefire following the conflict that erupted on February 28.

Abdollahzadeh was transferred to solitary confinement after a verbal dispute with an officer in the visitation hall of Urmia prison, Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported on April 28.

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Tehran’s five main dams remain below 20% capacity despite recent rainfall, a provincial water official warned on Sunday.

Behnam Bakhshi, spokesman for Tehran province’s water and wastewater company, said the dams held 345 million cubic meters of water, equal to 18% of capacity.

He said reserves were 90 million cubic meters lower than last year and 364 million cubic meters below the long-term average.

Bakhshi said recent rains had not overcome years of drought, adding that Tehran should already be planning for autumn and winter.

A National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) carrying more than 1.9 million barrels of crude oil has reached waters in the Far East after reportedly evading tracking systems and US naval surveillance, according to maritime monitoring reports.

The vessel, identified as HUGE (IMO: 9357183), is estimated to be carrying oil worth nearly $220 million.

It was last sighted off Sri Lanka over a week ago and is now reported to be transiting the Lombok Strait in Indonesia toward the Riau Archipelago.