Iran Executes Man Accused of Spying for Israel; Activists Say Confession Was Coerced

Iran on Wednesday executed a man its judiciary accused of spying for Israel, a claim disputed by rights activists who say the victim was tortured into a false confession.

The judiciary’s Mizan news agency identified the executed man as Babak Shahbazi and said he had gathered and sold sensitive information about Iranian data centers and security installations to Israeli handlers. Activists, including Iran Human Rights, said Shahbazi was detained after writing a letter to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offering his help in Ukraine’s war with Russia and that the message was used by authorities as evidence of espionage.

Iran did not provide details on how Shahbazi was executed; condemned prisoners in Iran are typically hanged. Iran Human Rights had earlier warned that Shahbazi could face execution. The group said in a statement that “Babak’s message to President Zelenskyy offering to help in the war against Russia was used as an example of espionage for Israel who they claim taught Babak to use Microsoft Word,” a comment the Iranian judiciary did not acknowledge.

Rights groups and monitors say the execution fits a pattern of increasingly harsh penalties for alleged espionage since a sharp escalation of hostilities involving Iran. Activists have reported at least eight people hanged on espionage charges since what they described as a recent 12-day confrontation between Iran and Israel, raising fears of a broader wave of executions.

The case also comes amid broader regional tensions and Iran’s involvement in international conflicts. Iran has supplied drones to Russia that Moscow has used in attacks on Ukraine, and some activists said Shahbazi’s purported offer to fight for Ukraine prompted his arrest. Tehran has not publicly linked Shahbazi’s case to the wider geopolitical disputes.

United Nations and rights organizations have repeatedly criticized Iran for its use of capital punishment and for other human rights abuses. A U.N. report said Iran carried out executions at an “alarming rate” in 2024, recording at least 975 executions that year, and cited concerns including barriers to freedom of expression, use of torture and arbitrary detention.

Independent verification of the circumstances surrounding Shahbazi’s arrest, treatment in custody and the evidence used to convict him was not immediately available. Iranian judicial authorities often do not provide detailed public records of proceedings in national security cases, and international monitors face access constraints. Human rights advocates called for transparency in the case and for international scrutiny of Iran’s treatment of detainees charged with espionage.