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Iran executes karate champion amid nationwide protests

Two men, including a karate athlete, have been executed for their alleged role in anti-regime protests in November.

Mohammad Mehdi Karami and Seyed Mohammad Hosseini were hanged early Saturday morning, according to the state-affiliated Fars News. The pair were were convicted of killing a Basij paramilitary force member during nationwide protests that started after the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini last September.

According to CNN, Karami—an Iranian-Kurdish karate champion—was not given final rights to speak to his family before execution. Karami was convicted on Dec. 5 in a sham trial that human rights group Amnesty International said “bore no resemblance to a meaningful judicial proceeding.