Iran executes protesters amid systemic repression: State violence as tool of political control in post-2018 crackdowns

Iran’s state violence operates within a framework of modernising authoritarianism that dismisses traditional knowledge systems as 'backward.' Indigenous concepts like *ta'azir* (discretionary punishment) in Islamic jurisprudence have been co-opted to justify executions, erasing their original intent as restorative rather than punitive. The executions of protesters—often from marginalised ethnic groups—mirror colonial-era strategies of divide-and-rule, where cultural identity is weaponised to fragment dissent. The state’s refusal to engage with indigenous legal pluralism (e.g., tribal customs in Balochistan) further entrenches systemic exclusion.

The January protests are the latest in a decade-long cycle of unrest, echoing the 2018 'Dehloran' uprising triggered by fuel price hikes, which was met with a brutal crackdown killing over 1,500. This pattern mirrors the 1979 Islamic Revolution’s suppression of leftist and ethnic movements, where executions were used to consolidate power. Regionally, authoritarian regimes from Saudi Arabia to Egypt have employed similar tactics, often with tacit Western approval, to maintain stability amid neoliberal economic restructuring. The historical continuity of state violence in Iran suggests it is not an aberration but a structural feature of the post-revolutionary order.

Comparing Iran’s executions to other contexts reveals a global pattern where states use capital punishment to suppress socio-economic dissent. In India, the 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act protests were met with police violence, but international condemnation was muted due to geopolitical interests. In Nigeria, the 2020 #EndSARS movement’s repression included extrajudicial killings, yet Western media often frames such violence as 'localised' rather than systemic. The Baloch diaspora in Pakistan and India has long documented Iran’s repression as part of a shared struggle against Persian-centric state policies, offering a transnational lens to understand these executions.

Research on authoritarian resilience shows that states facing legitimacy crises often escalate repression as a survival strategy, particularly when economic grievances are high. Studies on protest policing indicate that executions and mass arrests are correlated with increased future dissent, as they radicalise populations rather than deter them. Neuroscientific research on trauma suggests that state violence leaves intergenerational scars, increasing susceptibility to future mobilisations. The Iranian state’s use of executions aligns with these patterns, yet Western analyses often treat it as an irrational act rather than a calculated risk-management strategy.

Artistic responses to state violence in Iran—from poetry by imprisoned writers like Baktash Abtin to underground rap music—frame executions as attacks on collective memory and cultural identity. In Sufi traditions, the concept of *fana* (annihilation of the self) is inverted by the state, which seeks to erase dissenters entirely, turning them into 'disappeared' ghosts. The annual *Ashura* mourning rituals, which commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, are co-opted by the state to legitimise its own violence, blurring sacred and secular martyrdom. Meanwhile, diaspora artists like Googoosh and Mohsen Chavoshi use music to memorialise the dead, creating alternative archives of resistance.

If current trends continue, Iran’s executions may trigger a new wave of emigration among educated youth, exacerbating the 'brain drain' that has hollowed out the country’s professional classes. Scenario modelling suggests that further economic deterioration could lead to a coalition of disparate groups (workers, students, ethnic minorities) uniting against the regime, as seen in 2019. The state’s reliance on executions as a deterrent may backfire, as each act of violence could radicalise a new generation, akin to the 1979 revolution’s roots in 1960s repression. International actors must consider how sanctions and diplomatic isolation may inadvertently strengthen the regime’s narrative of besieged sovereignty.

The executed individuals—often from working-class or ethnic minority backgrounds—are rendered invisible in mainstream narratives, which focus on 'political prisoners' as a monolithic category. Baloch and Kurdish activists report that their communities are disproportionately targeted, with executions serving as a tool of ethnic erasure. Women protesters, such as those arrested in the 2022 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement, face additional layers of violence, including sexualised torture, yet their stories are sidelined in favour of male-centric accounts. The diaspora’s voices, including those of exiled journalists and artists, are systematically excluded from Western media, which privileges 'moderate' opposition figures over grassroots organisers.