“They helped the intelligence services achieve their objectives by providing them with information on military and security centres during the war,” Mizan added.

The number of executions in Iran has risen since the start of the war, which broke out on February 28 with massive US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader.

Iran is the world’s second-most prolific executioner after China, according to rights groups including Amnesty International.

The authorities executed at least 1,639 people last year, a record high since 1989, according to Iran Human Rights, an NGO based in Norway, and Together Against the Death Penalty (ECPM), which is headquartered in Paris.

On Tuesday, Amnesty denounced what it said was the “escalation” in executions after Iran announced the hanging of two men found guilty of taking part in anti-government protests during the winter.

AFP