Iran carries out rare public execution for man accused of killing lawyer

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Iran carried out a rare public execution on Monday of a man accused of murdering a lawyer two years ago, state media reported.

“The death sentence against the murderer of a lawyer was carried out this morning in public in the city of Shahroud” in the province of Semnan (north), the Mizan Online website of the judiciary reported.

The official IRNA news agency said the man was a 20-year-old who confessed to being hired by a gang to kill the lawyer, without providing further details.

Monday’s execution was carried out in accordance with Islamic Sharia law, known as “retribution.”

Public executions are relatively rare in Iran, where almost all capital punishments are carried out in prisons, usually by hanging.

According to human rights groups including Amnesty International, Iran executes more people each year than any other country except China.

Authorities in central Iran executed a fortune teller on Wednesday for raping and sexually assaulting his female clients.

rkh/mz/jsa