According to the judiciary’s Mizan news agency, the men were convicted of “burning the Quran” and “insulting the Prophet of Islam” in 2021 by the Arak Criminal Court

They were also given six-year prison sentences for “running groups to act against national security”.

Human rights activists have criticised the verdict, calling it “a cruel act by a medieval regime” and citing concerns about the fairness of the trial. The two men were reportedly held in solitary confinement for the first two months and denied access to a lawyer. Iran has recently witnessed a surge in executions amid continuing anti-government unrest, but those for blasphemy convictions are rare.

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Norway-based group Iran Human Rights, said in a statement, “The execution of Yousef and Sadrollah for ‘insulting the Prophet’ is not only a cruel act by a medieval regime, it is also a serious insult to the freedom of expression.” He added that “Lack of a strong reaction by the international community sends a green light to the Islamic Republic and their ideological allies worldwide.”

Iran has faced criticism from the international community for its high rate of executions, second only to China. The country has executed more than 200 people since the start of this year, according to Iran Human Rights. The group has also reported that the number of executions rose by 75% to 582 last year as authorities sought to “spread fear” among those taking part in nationwide protests sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini in September.

On Saturday, a Swedish-Iranian dual national accused of being behind a deadly attack on a military parade in 2018 was also executed, drawing condemnation from the European Union. The EU condemned the execution of Habib Chaab “in the strongest terms”.