1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites

Iran executes two members of exiled militant group

July 27, 2025

The alleged MEK operatives were convicted of manufacturing and using homemade projectiles to target homes, public buildings, and charitable institutions in Tehran.

Iranian flag
The MEK, a leftist-Islamist group, is designated the as a terrorist organization by IranImage: Westlight/IMAGO

Iran executed two men accused of working for the dissident organization Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MEK), according to the judiciary's official news outlet, Mizan on Sunday.

Mehdi Hassani and Behrouz Ehsani-Eslamloo were found guilty of carrying out attacks on civilian infrastructure on behalf of the exiled opposition group.

They were convicted of manufacturing and using homemade projectiles to target homes, public buildings, and charitable institutions in Tehran.

What were the two men found guilty of?

The judiciary said they operated from a safe house and filmed their activities for MEK-linked media.

"The terrorists, in coordination with MEK leaders, had set up a team house in Tehran, where they built launchers and hand-held mortars in line with the group's goals, fired projectiles heedlessly at citizens, homes, service and administrative facilities, educational and charity centres, and also carried out propaganda and information-gathering activities in support of the MEK," the judiciary report said.

Both were found guilty of waging war against God, armed rebellion, and plotting to undermine national security. The Supreme Court had upheld their death sentences.

What is the MEK?

The MEK, a leftist-Islamist group, is designated as a terrorist organization by Iran. The US and the European Union had also labelled it as a terrorist organization until 2012.

The MEK opposes the Islamic Republic in Iran, even as its leadership operates in exile.

According to human rights groups, Iran ranks second in the world in enforcing capital punishment.

Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah

Skip next section Explore more
Skip next section DW's Top Story

DW's Top Story

Skip next section More stories from DW