Wrestling, or “koshti,” is , rooted in its pre-Islamic Persian identity and cultural heritage. Its honor code of kindness, chivalry and humility has animated Irans epic poetry and prose, merging Iranian nationalism and heroism to emerge as one of Irans most enduring cultural treasures.
On March 19, just a day before the arrival of spring and the celebration of the ancient Iranian New Year Nowruz, the executed one of Irans most gifted wrestlers, along with two other young men â effectively punishing Iranians for honoring their pre-Islamic past.
The timing could not have been a coincidence. While the smoke was still billowing from the barrels of military-style guns used to carry out the worst massacre in Irans modern history this past January, and while wary and wounded Iranians were preparing to welcome Nowruz in a show of resilience, the regime decided to remind Iranians of exactly who is in charge.
The three young men, 19-year-old , 21-year-old Saeed Davudi, and Mehdi Ghassemi, were of killing two police officers, inciting violence by joining protesters, and waging war against God.Â
They were hanged in public in the city of Qom, the , the hub of Shia doctrines of morality and piety.
History will show that President Trump and stood firmly between the mullahs and their missiles. To cast this war as unnecessary â and worse, as illegal â by the liberal media and the Democrats in Congress is a dereliction of duty to safeguard the American people.
The death toll following the massacres of this past January is still rising: soccer player Mohammad Hossein Hosseini, water polo goalkeeper Ali Pishevarzadeh, marathon runner Niloufar Pas, kickboxing champion Benjamin Naghdi, teenage soccer player Abolfazl Dokht, boxer Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani and at least 20 others are reportedly detained in solitary confinement and are at risk of being executed.
The Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has warned the international community that “Iran is facing the risk of a catastrophic ,” and has denounced the swift trials as “sham trials based on torture and forced confessions.”
In January, just as now, the condemnation of the Islamic regime fell along party lines, with Republicans decrying the inhumanity of Iranian leaders while Democrats and the liberal media demurred over limits on the responsibility to protect.
This is not the first time the Islamic regime has killed its own athletes. Perhaps the most widely known case is Navid Afkari, a star wrestler who, despite a global campaign led by athletes and human rights organizations, was hanged in September 2020 for the alleged murder of a security guard.
Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad has pointed to the of eliminating Irans heroes so that it could crush Iranians spirit. “This is not just about sports,” she pleaded on X, “this is about human dignity. They hanged him without giving him a chance to say goodbye to his family.”
The revolution that toppled the Shah and ushered in “the age of extreme” of Ayatollah Khomeini was, at its core, according to Professor Ali Ansari, the director of Iranian studies at the University of St. Andrews, a battle to “redefine the Iranian identity.” Ayatollah Khomeini saw Iranian nationalism as a negation of Islam and sought to surrender Irans history and culture to the life of the prophet Muhammad and the rise of Shiism.
His sermons often ridiculed Irans pre-Islamic history. “Cyrus the Great was not that great if he allowed Jews to rebuild their temple,” he is quoted as saying in his compilation Sahifeh-ye Imam. Taking a direct jab at the beloved pre-Islamic king, Anushirvan the Just, he said, “He was Anushirvan the unjust because he didnt know Islam yet. In fact, he was worse than Satan.”
Iranians have cleverly pushed back against the regimes deliberate encroachment into their cherished history. At the outset of the revolution, they formed human roadblocks to
