Two senior Iranian Supreme Court judges, Mohammad Moghiseh and Ali Razini, were shot dead inside the Supreme Court in Tehran on Saturday, Iran’s judiciary confirmed. The assailant opened fire during the attack, wounding a bodyguard before taking his own life.

Both judges, mid-ranking Shiite clerics, had handled sensitive national security cases, including those involving espionage and terrorism. Judiciary spokesperson Asghar Jahangir suggested the killings may be connected to the judges’ work, stating that their efforts to combat spies and terrorist groups had likely angered external adversaries.

“In the past year, the judiciary has intensified efforts to identify spies and terrorist networks, provoking resentment among our enemies,” Jahangir said on state television. Reports indicate the judges’ cases were linked to individuals with ties to Israel and opposition groups supported by the United States, although further details were not disclosed.

Opposition websites have accused Moghiseh of prosecuting political prisoners, but this has not been confirmed by official sources.