Iran Hangs 13 Sunni Militants
By VOA News
14 July 2009
Iran state media say Iran has hanged 13 members of the Sunni militant group Jundallah (God's Soldiers).
A report Tuesday said the executions took place in a prison in the southeastern city of Zahedan.
Iranian news agencies had said Monday that the government would publicly hang 14 members of Jundallah, including Abdolhamid Rigi, the brother of the group's leader, Abdolmalik Rigi. But officials told state media Tuesday that Rigi will be executed later this week.
Reports said authorities changed their minds at the last minute and decided to carry out the executions in prison rather than in public.
Iranian authorities say the militants are terrorists who are linked to crimes including murder.
Jundallah is based in southeastern Iran near the border with Pakistan.
Iranian officials have accused Jundallah of having links to the Sunni al-Qaida terror network. Jundallah says it is fighting for the rights of Iran's Sunni minority.
In May, the group claimed responsibility for a Shi'ite mosque bombing in Zahedan that killed 25 people.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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