Iran executes two men in connection with protests

Iran executed two men on Saturday after they were convicted of killing a paramilitary force member during protests sparked by the death in custody of a young woman, the judiciary said.

The latest killings double the number executed so far in connection with the nationwide protests. Two men were put to death in December, sparking global outrage.

"Mohammad Mahdi Karami and Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini, the main perpetrators of the crime that led to the martyrdom of Ruhollah Ajamian, were hanged this morning," judicial news agency Mizan Online reported.

The court of first instance had sentenced the two men to death in early December, it said, and on Tuesday the Supreme Court upheld the death sentences, accusing them of killing Ajamian on November 3.

The victim was a member of the Basij militia -- linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps -- who died in Karaj, west of Tehran.

Prosecutors previously said the 27-year-old was stripped naked and killed by a group of mourners who had been paying tribute to a slain protester, Hadis Najafi.

Authorities have arrested thousands people in the wave of demonstrations that began with the September death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who had been arrested by morality police for allegedly breaching the strict dress code for women.

Since the beginning of the protest movement, courts have sentenced 14 people to death in connection with the demonstrations, according to an AFP count based on official information.

Among those, four have been executed, two others have had their sentences confirmed by the Supreme Court, six are awaiting new trials and two others can appeal.