Iran executes two men accused of spreading blasphemy in chat groups

Two men have been executed in Iran on charges of blasphemy, according to an announcement on Monday by the Iranian judiciary.

The two men, named Yousef Mehrdad and Sadrollah Fazeli Zare, were hanged early on Monday morning, according to the Iranian state news agency IRNA.

Mehrdad and Fazeli Zare were accused of spreading blasphemous insults against Islam and the Prophet in chat groups, among other allegations.

Iranian prosecutors also accused the men of having contact with anti-religious networks.

The judiciary’s Mizan news agency also said that a video of a Koran being burned was found on Mehrdad’s cellphone.

Human rights activists have for years criticised the frequent use of the death penalty in Iran.

Executions for the charge of blasphemy, however, were extremely rare in the country ruled by Shia clerics.

Iran has already executed 199 prisoners so far this year, according to a report several days ago by the Norway-based Kurdish human rights organisation Hengaw.

[dpa/NAN]