Iran postpones execution of Erfan Soltani as Trump warns 'strong action' if protesters are killed
Iran’s plans to execute Erfan Soltani, 26, for participating in anti-government protests may be on hold.
A 26-year-old Iranian shopkeeper, Soltani was to be “the first protester to be sentenced to execution,” according to the U.S. State department. The public execution was reportedly set to take place on Wednesday.
A family member said they have no idea if he’s still alive. The Wednesday deadline for his execution passed with no word from Iranian authorities, the Guardian is reporting. Family members stayed up until dawn awaiting any news, while knowing that Iran typically carries out executions during the morning call to prayers. But as dawn became the day, there was no announcement about Soltani’s fate.
Erfan Soltani’s execution has been postponed.
— Sarah Raviani (@sarahraviani) January 14, 2026
But his family says they have not slept. They stayed awake until dawn during Iran’s morning call to prayer, when most executions are carried out, fearing every moment could be his last.
They describe Erfan as “the most loving… pic.twitter.com/UKgkQTuRwa
Late Wednesday, Trump said in the Oval Office that he had been told the killings during Iran’s crackdown were subsiding, adding that he believed there was no plan to go ahead with any executions.
“We’ve been told that the killing in Iran is stopping — it’s stopped,” Trump told reporters. “And there’s no plan for executions.”
Trump said he was “informed by very important sources on the other side” about the decision not to proceed with the killings, reports Bloomberg, adding he would be “very upset” if the information proved untrue and the violent crackdown continued.
Solatani’s family were granted only one final visit with him prior to the execution. Soltani’s sister, who is a lawyer, tried to intervene but was told by authorities there was nothing to pursue, according to Norway-based rights group, Hengaw .
بیش از ۱۰۶۰۰ ایرانی تنها بهخاطر درخواست حقوق اولیه خود توسط رژیم جمهوری اسلامی دستگیر شدهاند. عرفان سلطانی ۲۶ ساله، که حکم اعدام او برای ۱۴ ژانویه صادر شده، در میان آنها است. این بار، رژیم جمهوری اسلامی حتی زحمت دادگاه صوری معمول ۱۰ دقیقهای خود را هم به خود نداد؛ عرفان بدون… pic.twitter.com/eudsfNEi3W
— USAbehFarsi (@USABehFarsi) January 13, 2026
Soltani’s family was not told how his execution would be carried out, but the most common method in Iran is hanging, Hengaw told CBS New s. Meanwhile, Trump said to CBS: “If they hang them, you’re going to see some things… We will take very strong action if they do such a thing.”
Soltani is a clothing seller whose family lives near Tehran, according to Hengaw . A spokesperson for the group states, “his family has said he was not a political activist, but he was a dissident of the government.”
The number of deaths among the protesters has grown to more than 2,600 according to Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR). An Iranian state official told Reuters on Tuesday that about 2,000 people had been killed. Police have been shooting into crowds of protesters, reports the New York Times.
IHR says Soltani’s family was informed on Monday that he was arrested in Fardis, a city west of Tehran, on Jan. 8 and sentenced to death, reports The Independent .
Meanwhile, Soltani has not been allowed to counter any charges against him in a fair trial. Nor is it even clear what the charges against him are.
“The Islamic Republic regime didn’t even bother with its usual 10-minute sham trial; Erfaneh was sentenced to execution without any legal process or defence lawyer,” the U.S. State department said on X.
Hengaw confirmed that “Soltani has been deprived of his most basic rights, including access to legal counsel, the right to a defence, and other fundamental due process guarantees.”
Islamic Republic officials have described the protesters as “mohareb” (a legal term meaning “war against God”), terrorists and agitators, Hengaw says. The regime has suggested the protesters are linked to Israel and the United States, committing offences punishable by death.
The protests began more than two weeks ago, sparked by Iran’s ailing economy and eventually growing to target the theocratic regime than runs the country.
The BBC reports that Iran’s Judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said the protesters will be “dealt with seriously and severely.” And prosecutors have said some will be charged with “enmity against God”, a national security offence that carries the death penalty.
Earlier this week, Trump posted on Truth Social that “until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.” Top Iranian official, Ali Larijani, responded by naming the U.S. president and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “the main killers of the people of Iran.”
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