Navid Afkari (Persian: نوید افکاری‎; 1993 – September 12, 2020) was an Iranian wrestler who was tortured and sentenced to death by the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for an alleged murder that occurred during the 2018 Iranian protests. His brothers Vahid and Habib were sentenced to 54 and 27 years in prison in the same case, respectively. Afkari was executed in the early morning hours of September 12, 2020 in the Adel-Abad prison in Shiraz.

Wrestling career

Afkari was a national champion in wrestling.

Charges

Afkari was charged with murdering Hasan Torkman, a government security agent working for Aabfa, during the August 2018 protests in Shiraz.

While Afkari issued a confession, he would later claim he had been tortured into making a false confession.

His parents sent a letter to the chief justice of Iran about the torture that they claim their son endured.[12]

Afkari was given a death sentence for his murder charges.

According to human rights activists in Iran, Afkari's brothers Vahid and Habib were sentenced to 54 and 27 years in prison for charges stemming from the same case.

Afkari's death sentence sparked global outrage and calls to overturn his execution.

Notable figures, including from U.S. President Donald Trump, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, and UFC President Dana White, pled for Iran not to execute Afkari. Trump tweeted on Sep 4, 2020:

Hearing that Iran is looking to execute a great and popular wrestling star, 27-year-old Navid Afkarai [sic], whose sole act was an anti-government demonstration on the streets. They were protesting the “country’s worsening economic situation and inflation”. To the leaders of Iran, I would greatly appreciate if you would spare this young man’s life, and not execute him. Thank you!

U.S. State Department spokeswoman, Morgan Ortagus, tweeted: "We join the world in outrage at the Iranian regime's death sentence for Navid Afkari, who was tortured into giving a false confession after participating in peaceful protests in 2018. The regime also tortured his two brothers and sentenced them to decades in prison. Let them go!"

The World Players Association urged for the Iranian judiciary to issue a stay of execution.

Iran's semi-official Tasnim News Agency dismissed Trump's tweet in a feature story, saying that US sanctions had hurt Iranian hospitals amid the pandemic, "Trump is worried about the life of a murderer while he puts many Iranian patients' lives in danger by imposing severe sanctions," the agency said.

On September 12, it was announced that, after the Shiraz Torkman's family had refused to forgive Afkari and allow him to pay them restitutions, Afkari had been executed by hanging.