A 23-year-old Iranian protester, Abolfazl Sepahi-Badejani, made a final defiant gesture before his public execution in Isfahan on July 28, according to reports. In seconds before being hanged, Sepahi-Badejani removed the black hood covering his face and kissed the hangman's noose.
Cell phone footage, which has circulated widely on social media but has not been independently verified, appears to show Sepahi-Badejani, clad in a blue jacket with his hands bound, performing the act. He then formed a heart shape with his fingers for the crowd, who reportedly chanted against the executioners in Farsi.
Sepahi-Badejani was executed alongside his co-defendant, 27-year-old Amirhossein Safari-Hosseinabadi. Both men were convicted of killing four police officers during anti-government protests in January, according to state media. The executions took place in a public square after the dawn call to prayer, drawing a crowd that had gathered hours earlier despite the presence of armed guards.
A witness described the scene as horrific and stated that their hatred for the regime intensified during the event, with some in the crowd reportedly shouting, "We despise your azaan [call to prayer], your religion, and you."
Mohammad Mostafaei, an Iranian lawyer who has defended activists, characterized the public hangings as a "calculated use of death to terrorize the public." He explained that public executions serve not only to punish the condemned but also to project state power over society. Alikhani Square, the site of the executions, remained under heavy guard in the days following, as unrest reportedly spread to other parts of Iran, including the capital, Tehran.
Videos shared on social media indicated protests in Isfahan and Tehran, with calls for international intervention. One citizen was quoted asking Iran International, "What are the UN and international human rights organizations doing? Are they dead? What are they paid for?"
Mostafaei also suggested that the public executions demonstrated the regime's perceived weakness rather than its strength, stating that a legitimate government would not need to use public displays of death to assert authority. The events in Iran occur amidst ongoing international conflicts.