Hamed Baniamerian (left), whose brother Vahid (right) was recently executed in Iran, spoke to The Sunday Times about the impact of his death on their family. Vahid, a 33-year-old electrical engineer, was executed at Ghezel Hesar prison near Tehran.
“I would have told him I love him, that I will miss him, that I didn’t want him to go,” Hamed said. “I always felt a sense of responsibility for my little brother. This is devastating for me.”
For Iran, execution is not merely a legal punishment; it is a primary language through which the state communicates with its people—one of intimidation, aimed at crushing a nation seeking freedom. For the regime, executions function like oxygen for a system facing the threat of popular uprising and internal dissent.
Amid ongoing war, nine political prisoners have reportedly been executed. Among them were six members of the MEK/PMOI, alongside three young protesters from the January 2026 uprising, including two teenagers. These executions appear to exploit wartime conditions and a near-total internet blackout to suppress dissent, control information, and silence the voices of the Iranian people.
On 29 January 2026, the European Union formally designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, as a terrorist organisation after a unanimous decision by all 27 member states at the Foreign Affairs Council. The move places the IRGC on the EU terrorist list alongside ISIL and Al Qaida, signalling that Europe views the Guard not as a conventional state body, but as a driver of repression and transnational violence.
