Iran Sentences Tajik Man to Death over Shiraz Attack

A photo released by Mizan from the trial of three suspects in the Shiraz attack.
A photo released by Mizan from the trial of three suspects in the Shiraz attack.
TT

Iran Sentences Tajik Man to Death over Shiraz Attack

A photo released by Mizan from the trial of three suspects in the Shiraz attack.
A photo released by Mizan from the trial of three suspects in the Shiraz attack.

An Iranian court sentenced to death a Tajik man for carrying out a gun attack that caused casualties on a religious site in August, the judiciary said Thursday.

The attack on the Shah Cheragh mausoleum in Shiraz, the capital of the southern Fars province, took place less than a year after a mass shooting at the same site that was later claimed by ISIS.

Nine suspects - all of them foreigners - were arrested after the August 13 attack, which killed two people and wounded seven others.

Iran’s judiciary-affiliated Mizan said the Iranian Revolutionary Court gave Rahmatollah Norouzof two death sentences. Norouzof, described as a member of ISIS, was convicted of "sedition and collusion against the security of the country."

Two other men were sentenced to five years in prison and deportation from the country for "participating in gatherings and collusion with the intention of disrupting the country's security."

Footage and pictures published following the attack showed windows shattered by bullets and blood staining the ground.

An earlier shooting at the shrine on October 26, 2022 killed 13 people and injured 30 others. ISIS later claimed responsibility for that attack.

However, activists and human rights organizations questioned the timing and motives of these attacks that coincided with the launch of a crackdown against protests over the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody in 2022.

Iran hanged two men in public on July 8 over the attack after their conviction for "corruption on Earth, armed rebellion, and acting against national security," Mizan said.

London-based rights group Amnesty International says Iran executes more people than any other country except China and hanged at least 582 people last year, the highest number since 2015.



Thousands Around the World Protest Middle East War

Police officers block Filipino activists from marching towards the US Embassy, during a protest in support of Palestinians, in Manila, Philippines, October 5, 2024. REUTERS/Lisa Marie David
Police officers block Filipino activists from marching towards the US Embassy, during a protest in support of Palestinians, in Manila, Philippines, October 5, 2024. REUTERS/Lisa Marie David
TT

Thousands Around the World Protest Middle East War

Police officers block Filipino activists from marching towards the US Embassy, during a protest in support of Palestinians, in Manila, Philippines, October 5, 2024. REUTERS/Lisa Marie David
Police officers block Filipino activists from marching towards the US Embassy, during a protest in support of Palestinians, in Manila, Philippines, October 5, 2024. REUTERS/Lisa Marie David

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in major cities around the world on Saturday demanding an end to bloodshed in Gaza and the wider Middle East as the start of Israel's war in the Palestinian enclave approaches its first anniversary.

About 40,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through central London while thousands gathered in Paris, Rome, Manila, Cape Town and New York City. Demonstrations were also held near the White House in Washington, protesting US support for its ally Israel in military campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon.

Protesters at Times Square in New York City wore the black-and-white keffiyeh scarf and chanted slogans like: "Gaza, Lebanon you will rise, the people are by your side." They held banners demanding an arms embargo against Israel.

In Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, at least 1,000 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on Sunday morning near the US embassy demanding that Washington stop supplying weapons to Israel, Reuters reported.
In London, counter-demonstrators waved Israeli flags as pro-Palestinian marchers walked by. There were 15 arrests on the sidelines of the protests, according to police, who did not specify whether those detained were from either group.
In Rome, police fired tear gas and water cannons after clashes broke out. Around 6,000 protesters defied a ban to march in the city center ahead of the Oct. 7 anniversary of Hamas' attack.
In Berlin, a protest drew about 1,000 demonstrators with Palestinian flags, who chanted: "One Year of Genocide."
German demonstrators also criticized what they called police violence against pro-Palestinian protesters. Israel supporters in Berlin protested against rising antisemitism. Scuffles broke out between police and pro-Palestinian protesters.
In Paris, Lebanese-French protestor Houssam Houssein said: "We fear a regional war, because there are tensions with Iran at the moment, and perhaps with Iraq and Yemen." Houssein added: "We really need to stop the war because it's now become unbearable."
Israel has faced wide international condemnation over its actions in Gaza, and now over its bombarding of Lebanon. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his government is acting to prevent a repeat of the Oct. 7 assault by Hamas and Washington says it supports Israel's right to self-defense.
US government agencies warned on Friday that the anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks may motivate individuals to engage in violence. Officials in some states, including New York, raised security measures out of caution.
In Manila, activists clashed with anti-riot police after they were blocked from holding a demonstration in front of the US embassy in the Philippine capital against Washington's support for Israel.