The United States on Friday expressed solidarity with Iranian people, saying in a message marking the fifth anniversary of Tehran's execution of wrestler Navid Afkari that Washington backed their struggle for freedom.
"Five years ago today, the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran executed Navid Afkari after years of torture and a sham trial," the State Department said in a post on its Persian X account.
The State Department said Navid Afkari’s case "reflects a broader pattern of systematic impunity for torture, forced confessions, and executions carried out without due process in Iran’s judiciary."
Afkari was arrested in 2018 and later sentenced to death for killing government employee Hassan Torkaman during antigovernment protests in Shiraz.
Before being executed in 2020, Afkari sent several audio messages from prison in which he said he had confessed to the murder only under physical and psychological duress.
"Through sham judicial procedures, this regime seeks to create the illusion of justice while denying fairness, fair trial, and accountability," the State Department said in its post on X.
"The United States condemns these actions and reaffirms its unwavering support for the Iranian people in their pursuit of justice, freedom, and human dignity."
At the height of Iran’s 2022 protests against the Islamic Republic, Donald Trump praised the demonstrations by the Iranian people.
“The people of Iran are bravely protesting against their corrupted and brutal regime, courageously facing down violence, persecution, jail, torture, and even death... we are with you and we will always be with you.”
Speaking to Iran International, the lawmakers hit out at the escalation to the war in Ukraine after Poland said 19 Russian drones reportedly violated its airspace on Tuesday but were thwarted by Polish and NATO jets and air defenses.
Russia has stepped up blitzes on Ukraine in recent weeks involving hundreds of drones each and including Iranian-designed Shahed kamikaze drones. It was not immediately clear if they were among the drones intercepted over Poland.
“Iran has, over the last several years, been a critical and active partner in Russia’s aggression against Ukraine,” Democrat Senator Chris Coons said.
“By providing drone technology and even producing drones inside Russia for use against Ukraine, Tehran has enabled Putin’s war machine.”
Moscow denied any intent to violate Polish airspace, saying it did not seek to strike any targets in Poland and questioning whether the drones came from Russia at all.
The Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee said facts are still emerging but said Russia had erred in piercing NATO air space.
“Russia is playing with fire here. Putin has made a lot of mistakes, and this could be the worst one he’s made yet," Republican Senator James Risch told Iran International. "We’ll see how this unfolds.”
'Open conflict' near
Poland, a former member of the Eastern Bloc under Moscow's tutelage for much of the twentieth century has become a staunch Western ally and base for NATO troops as the alliance's relationship with Iran, Russia and China has soured.
The drone incursion rattled its leadership, which warned of a dire escalation.
"This is the closest we have been to open conflict since World War II, but there is no reason to believe we're on the brink of war," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told parliament.
Iran provides drone technology to Russia for its war against Ukraine, prompting a series of punitive sanctions from the United States and European Union.
Belarus, a close ally of Russia, confirmed the drones had entered Polish airspace, calling it an accident after the drones' navigation systems were jammed.
Western leaders have frequently warned against what they see as deepening security cooperation among their Eurasian adversaries Russia, Iran, China and North Korea.
After the incidents, Warsaw invoked Article 4 of NATO's charter which enables closer coordination with all NATO member states. A UN Security Council meeting to discuss the developments is scheduled for Friday.
Poland closed all border crossings with Belarus ahead of the joint Russia-Belarus Zapad 2025 military exercises, citing alleged security risks and Russian aggression.
Amini died under circumstances which remain unexplained shortly after her arrest on Sept. 16, 2022, sparking a wave of protests nationwide dubbed the Woman, Life, Freedom movement which was ultimately quashed with deadly force.
Shahinkar and her mother joined a Tehran protest on Oct. 15, in which security forces shot her in the face with non-lethal munitions, leaving her blind in one eye.
Now living in exile in the United States, she believes the movement has moved far beyond opposition to the hijab mandated by Tehran's theocracy toward demanding the total downfall of the ruling system.
“Our youth were not killed and people like me were not blinded — many in one eye, many in both eyes, many raped and tortured in prisons — just to settle for superficial reforms,” Shahinkar told Iran International.
Her comments come as tensions fester inside Iran. According to Iran Human Rights, authorities executed Mehran Bahramian, a protester arrested during the 2022 demonstrations, just weeks before the anniversary.
Repression continued
Thousands of people in Iran face the risk of execution amid what Amnesty International on Wednesday called a deepening execution crisis.
The rights group said more than 800 people had been executed in 2025 so far, nearly double the pace of last year, and warned that dozens of other detainees linked to the protests remain at imminent risk of execution following what it describes as unfair trials and forced confessions.
Shahinkar says families of those killed or arrested during the unrest with whom she remains in touch tell her about renewed harassment, saying they have received summonses by security services to discourage public commemorations.
The protests, Shahinkar said, sparked visible social change but she believes the state allows it as a form of controlled freedom.
'We want evil rule gone'
A top Tehran decision-making body in May ordered the parliament not to enforce a contentious law mandating stricter hijab regulations.
“We see women singing in the streets, people taking relative freedoms. But they allow a bit of space only to avoid triggering another protest, Shahinkar said.
"We don’t want small freedoms meant to silence people. We want the Islamic Republic gone — its evil removed from our country."
Iranian-American psychotherapist Azadeh Afsahi, who works with survivors of torture through her nonprofit Iran House, says she hears this same shift from many Iranians she counsels.
“The definition of justice is not available when we talk with survivors, because we don’t know when they will see accountability. But what stands out is their willingness to fight, even after everything," Afsahi told Iran International.
Shahinkar insists that only mass resistance will make a difference.
“The Islamic Republic won’t fall through kindness or dancing. It takes anger and massive numbers in the streets — more than 50% of society, not just 20 or 30.”
Struggle goes on
Despite the risks, she says fear no longer holds her back.
“At first, I was terrified when I saw security forces. But over time, the fear disappeared… Even with one eye, we can celebrate freedom.”
The anniversary of Amini’s death is being marked by vigils and demonstrations abroad, while inside Iran, rights groups say authorities have tightened restrictions on gatherings. The United States and several European countries have issued statements honoring Amini’s memory and calling for accountability.
For Shahinkar, however, symbolic gestures abroad are not enough; she maintains that the future depends on Iranians themselves realizing their strength and carrying the struggle beyond hijab into a demand for systemic change.