Extraordinary photo of brave Iranian smiling broadly with a noose round his neck moments before his execution for killing a notorious 'hanging judge' resurfaces after guard shot dead two supreme court justices reviled for condemning protestors to death
An incredible image of a brave Iranian smiling with a noose around his neck moments before being hanged has resurfaced after two supreme court justices were shot dead.
The photograph of Majid Kavousifar, 28, captures the man's final moments before execution after he and his nephew Hossein were convicted of the murder of Judge Masoud Ahmadi Moghaddasi.
Majid and Hossein Kavousifar were both publicly executed by hanging in central Tehran in August 2007.
Moghaddasi was one of several judges of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Court allegedly responsible for the mass execution of political dissidents in 1988.
As Judge Moghaddasi was leaving a court building in Tehran on August 2, 2005, an assailant on a motorcycle shot the judge twice with a pistol, killing him.
That assailant was later identified as Majid Kavousifar.
After murdering Moghadassi, Majid escaped from Iran to the UAE where he pleaded the US embassy for refugee status - but the embassy surrendered him to Emirati police where he was then extradited to Iran.
The extraordinary images circulating online show Majid's public hanging in front of the Ershad Judiciary Complex. At the time, the Kavousifars' hangings were the first public executions carried out in Tehran in five years.
The photograph of smiling Majid Kavousifar, 28, captures the man's final moments before execution after he and his nephew Hossein, were convicted of the murder of Judge Masoud Ahmadi Moghaddasi
The brave Iranian can be seen in resurfaced images waving at crowds of onlookers moments before his public execution
At the time, the Kavousifars' hangings were the first public executions carried out in Tehran in five years
Majid and Hossein were hanged from ropes attached to five meter long cranes; however, both men were placed on stools, which were pulled from under their feet at the moment of their execution.
The beaming man appeared to die instantly, while Hossein struggled for a few moments before going limp. After several minutes, their bodies were removed and placed into an ambulance.
Majid was seen in his final moments smiling at his nephew in an attempt to reassure him and his last words, to police officers, were: 'I reached the point at which I decided to eradicate any injustice'.
He was seen in images waving in handcuffs at onlookers and grinning at the camera with the blue noose placed around his neck.
Another heart-wrenching image captured a young girl in a pink outfit watching on as Majid was killed before her eyes.
The resurfacing of the photographs of the brave man come after two ruthless Iranian judges allegedly responsible for the mass execution of political dissidents in 1988 were killed in a shooting at the Supereme Court building in Tehran.
Ali Razini and Mohammad Moghisseh were shot Saturday morning after a gunman opened fire in the Supreme Court in a 'planned assassination', according to the judiciary's website.
The shooter is said to have then killed himself following the attack.
Majid and his nephew Hossein were hanged from ropes attached to five-metre-long cranes
Majid Kavousifar bids farewell to his relatives before being hanged in public in central Tehran on August 2, 2007
A young girl attends the hanging of Majid Kavousifar and Hossein Kavousifar in Tehran
State news agency IRNA also reported that one other person was injured in the attack.
The two slain judges are said to have worked on cases 'fighting crimes against national security, espionage and terrorism'.
The motive behind their killing was not immediately clear, but according to the judiciary, the assailant was not involved in any cases before the Supreme Court.
It did not provide further details on the attacker's identity.
An investigation into the incident has been launched, according to authorities.
President Masoud Pezeshkian expressed his condolences over the deaths, calling on the authorities to act swiftly.
'I strongly urge the security and law enforcement forces to take the necessary measures as soon as possible by examining the dimensions and angles of this reprehensible act and to identify its perpetrators,' he said.
Veteran judge Moghisseh, 68, was sanctioned in 2019 by the United States for having 'overseen countless unfair trails, during which charges went unsubstantiated and evidence was disregarded', according to the US Department of the Treasury.
Two top Iranian judges were killed in a shooting at the Supreme Court building in Tehran on Saturday. Pictured: Judge Ali Razini
Mohammad Moghisseh, 68, had been sanctioned by the US in 2019
Police stand in front of the judiciary building after the assassination of the Supreme Court Judges Mohammad Moghiseh and Ali Razini in Tehran, Iran, January 18, 2025
The motive behind their killing was not immediately clear
Attacks targeting judges are rare, but Iran has seen a number of shootings targeting high-profile figures over the past years
Razini, 71, held several important positions in Iran's judiciary and was previously targeted in a 1998 assassination attempt by assailants 'who planted a magnetic bomb in his vehicle', according to Mizan.
Though attacks targeting judges are rare, Iran has seen a number of shootings targeting high-profile figures over the past years.
In October, a Shiite Muslim preacher was shot dead in the southern city of Kazeroun after leading Friday prayers.
In April 2023, a powerful cleric identified as Abbas Ali Soleimani was also shot dead at a bank in the northern province of Mazandaran.
And in August 2005, renowned Iranian judge Hassan Moghaddas was murdered by two gunmen who climbed into his car in the middle of a busy business district in Tehran.
Two men convicted over his killing were publicly executed by hanging two years later.
