Iran judiciary chief says he won’t give in to calls to speed execution of opposition activists

Iran’s judiciary chief refuses to speed executions

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s judiciary chief says he will not give in to political pressure to speed up the execution of opposition activists.

Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani says some in the ruling hard-line establishment are pushing the judiciary to step beyond the law in the crackdown on the opposition.

In December, hard-line government supporters attending street rallies called for opposition leaders to be executed. Two men convicted of plotting to overthrow the Islamic leadership were hanged Thursday.

Larijani said political motives should not influence investigations.

The opposition accuses authorities of using last week’s executions to frighten its supporters from turning out for rallies coinciding with the Feb. 11 anniversary of the 1979 revolution.