Tehran: In a chilling escalation of the Islamic Republic’s judicial crackdown on dissent, Bita Hemmati is set to become the first female protester to be executed in connection with the mass uprisings that have convulsed Iran since late 2025.
The death sentence, handed down by the notorious Revolutionary Court, has sparked a wave of international condemnation and highlighted the regime’s increasingly desperate efforts to stifle a resilient anti-government movement. Hemmati was sentenced alongside three other defendants, including her husband, Mohammadreza Majidi Asl, following a trial that human rights monitors have branded a “sham”.
The group were arrested during the January 2026 protests in Tehran — an uprising fuelled by economic collapse and soaring inflation that rapidly transformed into a direct challenge to the clerical establishment.
A Verdict Written In Secret
According to the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) and the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Hemmati and her co-defendants were subjected to “prolonged interrogation and physical torture” before being brought before Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court. Presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, the court convicted the group on a laundry list of security-related charges, including “operational action for a hostile government” (referring to the United States) and “enmity against God” (Moharebeh). Specifically, authorities alleged that the group used explosives and threw concrete blocks at security forces from rooftops, charges that advocates claim are entirely baseless and lack any forensic evidence.
The Human Toll Of Repression
The case of Bita Hemmati is particularly symbolic. As the first woman to face the gallows for her role in the 2026 uprising, her plight has become a rallying cry for the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement. “The issuance of death sentences against protesters like Bita Hemmati is a clear sign of judicial desperation,” noted a spokesperson for the Center for Human Rights in Iran. “The regime is attempting to use the ultimate punishment as a tool of psychological warfare to prevent another volcano of public anger from erupting. “In addition to the death sentences, the court has ordered the total confiscation of the defendants’ personal assets, leaving their families destitute. A fifth associate, Amir Hemmati, was sentenced to six years in prison on charges of “collusion against national security”.
A Global Outcry
The planned executions come at a time of unprecedented internal and external pressure for the Iranian regime. Following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei earlier this year and the subsequent military tensions with the US and Israel, the judiciary has fast-tracked capital punishment as its primary method of crowd control. Reports suggest that over 1,600 executions were carried out in 2025 alone, the highest figure in decades.
United Nations experts and human rights defenders have issued an urgent plea to Tehran to halt the execution of Hemmati and her colleagues. However, with the regime bracing for what many analysts believe is a looming revolution, the gallows of Evin Prison remain a grim constant in Tehran’s skyline.