Erfan Soltani was not given the death penalty, Iran claims amid fears that US could act 'within 24 hours'

Iran's judiciary has claimed that Erfan Soltani has not been sentenced to death. It was clarified on Thursday that he was arrested during protests, but has not been handed the death penalty. It added that Soltani ‍is being charged with "colluding against the country's internal security and ‌propaganda activities against ⁠the regime", but this charge does not carry a death sentence. He is currently being held ​in the central penitentiary of Karaj. Human rights groups have claimed that Soltani could become the first protester to be executed as part of the current demonstrations against the Iranian regime. They stated that he was due to be hanged on Wednesday (January 14). However, reports later emerged that the execution had been "postponed". Now, Iran's judiciary has dismissed claims of a death sentence being given to Soltani. One of his family members and a Norway-based human rights organisation also stated that the scheduled execution did not take place yesterday.

Human rights groups feared Erfan Soltani could be publicly hanged

Soltani owns a clothes shop in Fardis, Central Iran, and was arrested at his home for taking part in the protests that have rocked the nation in the past weeks. His family told Arina Moradi, a member of the Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights, that they were unaware of his whereabouts for days after he was arrested, and claimed that they were informed about the death sentence four days later. Activists raised concerns that the 26-year-old could be tortured and abused in jail and feared a public hanging to terrorise the people. Reports suggested that Erfan Soltani’s sister, who is a licensed lawyer, tried to gain access to his files but failed. His family appealed to US President Donald Trump to stop their son's execution, stating that he was "never a political activist, just part of the younger generation who was protesting against the current situation in Iran."

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Donald Trump says Iran has called off Soltani's execution

Trump had warned Iran against carrying out the execution, saying "very strong action" will be taken if Soltani is executed. "If they hang them, you're going to see some things," he told CBS News in an interview. On Wednesday, he told reporters that Iran has called off executions of detained protesters and that he has been informed that "the killing (of protesters) has stopped" in the country. However, he has not ruled out military action. The head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has vowed to respond to the United States and Israel, accusing them of being involved in the unrest in the country. Iran has closed its airspace amid heightened tensions in the region. Two European military officials told Reuters US could act against Iran within the next 24 hours; however, the Trump administration might go another way to "keep everyone on their toes."