Iran executes alleged leader of US-based anti-government group

Iran has executed Jamshid Sharmahd, an Iranian-German dual national accused of orchestrating terrorist attacks as the alleged leader of a US-based anti-government group. Iranian state media announced the execution on Monday, stating that Sharmahd’s death sentence, initially issued in February 2023, was upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court.

The Tehran Prosecutor’s Office claims that Sharmahd led “Tondar,” a California-based organization advocating for the reinstatement of Iran’s monarchy, which was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution. “He planned numerous terror acts against Iran under the orders of Western and American intelligence agencies and bosses in the child-murdering Zionist regime,” the prosecutor’s statement alleged.

Tondar, identified as the armed faction of the “Kingdom Assembly of Iran,” has been implicated in a 2008 bombing at a Shiraz mosque that killed 14 people and injured over 200. Iranian authorities further accuse the group of conducting sabotage operations and other attacks within the country.

Sharmahd, who moved to the United States in 2003, was reportedly captured outside Iran in 2020 and subsequently transferred to Tehran by Iranian intelligence agents. While Iran has not detailed the location or means of capture, Sharmahd’s family has alleged he was abducted in the United Arab Emirates.

The German government, which previously condemned Sharmahd’s death sentence, declared two Iranian diplomats persona non grata in Berlin following his sentencing. Germany and other international entities have criticized the proceedings and called for fair treatment of dual nationals in Iran, where tensions over charges of espionage and terrorism often amplify diplomatic strains.