Iran executes man over police station attack

Iran executed Mohammad Aref Shahbakhsh on Saturday after convicting him over involvement in an attack on a police station in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, the judiciary said.

The judiciary's Mizan Online website said the death sentence was carried out after the completion of legal procedures. It described Shahbakhsh as an operative linked to Jaish al-Adl, an outlawed militant group active in the province.

Mizan said Shahbakhsh was convicted of baghi, or armed rebellion against the Islamic state, and moharebeh, or waging war against God, for his role in the armed attack on the Qaleh Bid police station in Khash city.

The judiciary said the attack killed and wounded several police personnel, but did not specify when it happened.

Sistan-Baluchistan has long seen clashes between Iranian security forces and armed groups, including Sunni militants and members of the ethnic Baloch minority. Rights groups outside Iran, including Amnesty International, say Iran carries out more executions each year than any country except China.