Protest activities in six cities coincide with the expansion of the prison-based anti-execution campaign to 59 prisons, as activists condemn the regime’s escalating use of capital punishment.
Resistance Units Expand Anti-Execution Activities Across Iran
Resistance Units and rebellious youth carried out coordinated protest activities across several Iranian cities this week in support of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign, reaffirming growing opposition to the Iranian regime’s escalating wave of executions.
The activities were held in Tehran, Qazvin, Mashhad, Tabriz, Shiraz, and Isfahan, where activists displayed banners and posters, honored recently executed members of the PMOI (MEK), and called for an end to executions. The campaign coincided with the 131st week of the nationwide prison movement against capital punishment, now active in 59 prisons across Iran.
The demonstrations paid tribute to executed political prisoners Mehdi Hasani, Behrouz Ehsani, and Mehdi Khanaki, whose deaths have become symbols of the regime’s continuing crackdown on political dissent.
Honoring Fallen Political Prisoners
During the coordinated actions, Resistance Units displayed posters bearing the images of the three executed prisoners alongside slogans opposing executions and supporting the Iranian people’s struggle for freedom. Flowers decorated with the martyrs’ photographs were placed in public locations as acts of remembrance.
Among the messages displayed in different cities were:
- Tehran: “Brave Mehdi, we will never forget you. Your name lives forever in our hearts.”
- Qazvin: “Mehdi, your name and your path illuminate our future.”
- Mashhad: “In memory of Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hasani. On the anniversary of your martyrdom, you remain alive in our hearts.”
- Tabriz: “No to Execution Tuesdays. No to executions.”
- Shiraz: “Prison cannot silence the voices of women who seek freedom. Tuesday: No to Executions.”
- Isfahan: “The blood of our martyrs and the suffering of our prisoners are united.”
The coordinated campaign reflects continuing efforts by Resistance Units to keep public attention focused on the regime’s use of executions as a tool of political repression.
Anti-Execution Campaign Reaches 131st Week
In a statement marking its 131st week, the organizers of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign honored the memory of Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hasani, political prisoners and campaign supporters who were executed after being violently removed from the political ward of Ghezel Hesar Prison on July 26, 2025.
According to the campaign, fellow political prisoners were severely beaten during the prison raid, while the families of the executed prisoners have never been informed of their burial locations.
The statement accuses the Iranian regime of continuing to ignore widespread domestic and international opposition to executions while carrying out hangings on an almost daily basis.
Executions Continue Despite International Condemnation
Campaign organizers reported that at least 303 people have been executed since March 21, 2026, including political prisoner Mehdi Khanaki, who was reportedly executed in secret without receiving a fair trial.
The statement also warned that several other political prisoners—including Issa Chari, Amir-Hassan Akbari-Monfared, Sepehr Amirzadeh, Akbar Arabzadeh, and Mehdi Arabzadeh—have recently been sentenced to death, raising fears of further executions in the coming weeks.
International pressure has continued to mount. The campaign welcomed recent warnings from the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, which called for halting the death sentences issued in the Alikhani Square protest case in Isfahan.
The statement also noted that the European Union recently imposed sanctions on five Iranian judges involved in issuing death sentences and other severe punishments, describing the move as an important step toward accountability.
Prisoners Continue Hunger Strike
The campaign also expressed solidarity with approximately 1,500 prisoners in Unit 2 of Ghezel Hesar Prison, whose strike has continued for two weeks without any response from prison authorities.
Calling on the international community to amplify the voices of prisoners facing execution, the organizers urged governments, human rights organizations, and civil society to increase pressure on Tehran to halt executions and protect political prisoners.
On Tuesday, July 28, 2026, campaign members observed another coordinated hunger strike across 59 prisons, making the “No to Execution Tuesdays” initiative one of Iran’s longest-running organized prison protests against capital punishment.
As Resistance Units continue their activities inside cities and prisoners maintain their protests behind bars, the anti-execution campaign remains a visible symbol of growing resistance to one of the regime’s most repressive instruments.
