Iran executed Alireza Sepahi hours after he married Mahshad Keshani over the phone during a prison ceremony. The couple, both protesters arrested earlier this year, decided to marry before Sepahi’s execution. Rights lawyer Amirsalar Davoudi officiated the wedding with only minimal dowry due to restrictions. Hours later, Sepahi was hanged at Isfahan’s Shahid Alikhani Square as part of a public spectacle by the regime aimed at intimidating protesters.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Alireza Sepahi, 25, and Mahshad Keshani, 22, were among thousands arrested during anti-regime protests in Iran earlier this year. They planned a phone wedding at the Isfahan prison with the help of a rights lawyer named Amirsalar Davoudi. Just hours after their ceremony on Monday, Sepahi was executed by hanging, despite having avoided an execution attempt over the summer due to a heart attack. Keshani's family could only provide a Quran, saffron rock candy, and a single red rose as dowry for the wedding. The case highlights the harsh punishments imposed by the Iranian government on protesters and their families.
Written for “Iran Prison Wedding Execution” on 2026-10-08,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
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Leaning: leans left for article 66474 (high confidence, 1 verified quote) · logged 2026-10-08
An Iranian couple jailed for protesting against the regime married in a prison ceremony over the phone — and then were cruelly separately forever when the groom was hanged by the regime just hours later, before they ever got to see each other as husband and wife.
asserted
they → jail → husband
Alireza Sepahi, 25, and Mahshad Keshani, 22, were among the thousands arrested during the anti-regime protests earlier this year, with Keshani pushing for an informal wedding before Sepahi could be killed by Islamist government.
Sepahi, who avoided his execution over the summer after he suffered a heart attack on his way to the gallows, agreed.
uncertain
he → arrest → gallows
The two lovers were joined by their fathers over the phone inside the Isfahan prison, the Sunday Times reported.
asserted
Times → join → prison
Amirsalar Davoudi, a rights lawyer in Tehran, helped officiate the wedding on Monday as he read the couple’s vows for their fathers to bless, with Keshani’s family only able to offer a copy of the Quran, a saffron rock candy and single red rose as dowry.
asserted
family → help → dowry
“It was Mahshad’s idea,” Davoudi told the Times.
asserted
Davoudi → tell → Times
“Even now, I wonder how one young woman can possess such courage.
asserted
woman → wonder → courage
“I do not know how to come to terms with this,” he added.
asserted
he → know → this
“The regime is taking revenge on innocent young people for the humiliation it has suffered internationally.”
asserted
it → take → humiliation
Hours after the wedding, Sepahi was hanged at Isfahan’s Shahid Alikhani Square, the site of one of the largest protests against the Islamic republic in January.
asserted
Sepahi → hang → January
It’s been a common execution spot for the regime’s public hangings — an effort to send a message to the people.
asserted
It → send → people
Sepahi’s cousin, Abolfazl Sepahi Badjani, was among the men hanged at the square, which has sparked backlash and protests against the regime.
asserted
which → hang → regime
There were 12 men involved in the Alikhani Square case accused of killing four security guards during the protest, with human rights groups saying that the defendants were forced to give false confessions under torture.
asserted
defendants → be → torture
Sepahi’s hanging, along with fellow prisoner Alireza Raisi, means only five of the 12 accused are still alive.
asserted
five → mean → 12
The groom was last at the site in July for his execution, but he suffered a heart attack and fell into a coma before the state could hang him.
uncertain
state → suffer → him
Sepahi eventually regained consciousness and was allowed one final family visit on Sunday, a sign that his death was imminent.
asserted
death → regain → Sunday
That is what sparked Keshani’s insistence that Davoudi help marry them before it’s too late, according to The Times.
uncertain
it → spark → Times
“I told her, ‘My dear, you understand that this cannot simply be undone?’” Davoudi told her.
asserted
Davoudi → tell → her
“She said, ‘Mr Davoudi, I love Alireza.’”
asserted
I → say → Alireza
When Davoudi passed on the plan to Sepahi, the young man couldn’t believe what he was hearing and eventually broke down in the prison.
asserted
he → pass → prison
“Alireza was crying, and something deeply painful and beautiful happened.
asserted
something → cry → ?
Even the prison officers began to cry,” Davoudi recalled.
asserted
Davoudi → begin → ?
Sepahi’s family were given one last insult after they were prevented from burying their son in his home town, Iran International reported.
asserted
International → give → town
The Aporia
