Iran has executed national champion wrestler Navid Afkari, who was found guilty of killing a man during anti-government protests in 2018.
There had been an international outcry over Afkari's death sentence, which was carried out on Saturday morning "at the insistence of the parents and the family of the victim," according to the justice department in southern Fars province.
Afkari, 27, had been convicted of stabbing Hassan Turkman, a water company security guard, along with other charges. Iran's Supreme Court rejected a review of the case in late August.
His brothers Vahid and Habib were sentenced to 54 and 27 years in prison in the same case, according to human rights activists in Iran.
Afkari, a Greco-Roman wrestler, had said he was tortured into making a false confession, according to his family and activists, while his lawyer said there was no proof of his guilt.
Iran's judiciary has denied Afkari's claims, Reuters reported.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it was shocked by the "very sad news" of his execution.
"It is deeply upsetting that the pleas of athletes from around the world and all the behind-the-scenes work of the IOC... did not achieve our goal," a statement said.
Comments
Post a Comment