According to published information, Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, has sentenced Mohammad Reza Majidi-Asl, Bita Hemmati, Behrouz Zamaninejad, and Kourosh Zamaninejad to death in connection with the January 2026 nationwide protests. In the same case, Amir Hemmati has been sentenced to 5 years and 8 months in prison. Mohammad Reza Majidi-Asl and Bita Hemmati are husband and wife, and Amir Hemmati is Bita Hemmati’s brother.
In its verdict, the court charged these four protesters with “operational actions for the hostile government of the United States and terrorist groups,” citing Article 1 of the law known as the “Intensification of Punishment for Cooperation with the Zionist Regime and Hostile Countries Against National Security and Interests,” and subsequently issued death sentences. The court also sentenced them to 5 years of discretionary imprisonment for “assembly and collusion” and ordered the confiscation of all their assets.
The issuance of death sentences and the total confiscation of assets against protesters demonstrate a clear escalation of judicial repression in the Islamic Republic. By utilizing security-related charges, the government simultaneously employs capital punishment, lengthy imprisonment, and financial deprivation against protesters to respond to social dissent with terror, poverty, and the destruction of lives. These sentences simultaneously violate the right to life, the right to a fair trial, and property rights, proving once again that the judiciary serves as a tool for political repression rather than a guarantor of justice.