The Islamic Republic of Iran is set to begin what human rights advocates fear will be a wave of retaliatory executions today, with reports confirming that protester Erfan Soltani is scheduled to be hanged within hours. The move signals a terrifying escalation in the regime’s judicial crackdown, as officials now formally categorize detained demonstrators as “enemies waging war on the regime”—a charge known as Moharebeh, which carries a mandatory death sentence.
Erfan Soltani, whose name has become a rallying cry across social media despite the internet blackout, issued a defiant final message from prison before his scheduled execution. Refusing to ask for clemency, Soltani urged his fellow citizens to “keep fighting” and explicitly called for the population to “take over institutions.” Most notably, he echoed a phrase recently used by President Trump, telling his countrymen that “help is on the way,” though he did not specify the nature of that assistance.
The decision to hang Soltani appears to be part of a broader strategy to legally process the thousands of arrests made during the “Tehran Massacre.” By labeling protesters as enemy combatants rather than dissidents, the judiciary is clearing the path for mass executions without the need for lengthy trials or due process.
“They are basically planning executions for a lot of protesters,” warned one legal analyst monitoring the situation. “The charge of waging war is a blanket license to kill. They are trying to empty the prisons by sending everyone to the gallows.”
Soltani’s execution, if carried out, marks the regime’s transition from street-level violence to institutionalized slaughter. His final words—predicting external aid—strike a nerve in a country currently paralyzed by rumors of U.S. intervention. Whether his prediction was based on hope or knowledge remains unknown, but his death is likely to inflame a street movement that has already survived bullets, blackouts, and massacres.
Footage Charlie Kirk has been shot
Charlie Kirk has been shot
