Iran judiciary says man executed over winter protest case

Iran's judiciary said it executed Mehdi Khanaki after he was found guilty of charges linked to protests that spread across the country last winter.

The judiciary's Mizan Online news website said the death sentence was carried out after confirmation by the supreme court. It described Khanaki as a member of an active terrorist group during the protests.

The protests began at the end of December over the cost of living, then spread quickly across Iran and widened to include political demands. Rights groups say the crackdown killed thousands of people. Iranian authorities described the protests as riots backed by the United States and Israel, and said the violence killed around 3,000 people.

Mizan Online said Khanaki was arrested on February 10 in Karaj, west of Tehran, while in possession of a large arsenal. It said the weapons had been used to carry out shootings in January.

The website said Khanaki was sentenced to death and to the confiscation of all his property for having acted in favour of what it called the Zionist and American regimes.

The number of executions in Iran has risen since the start of the Middle East war on February 28, with many linked to the protests. Amnesty International says Iran carries out the second highest number of executions in the world after China.