In a shocking surge of capital punishment in Iran, 87 people have been executed in the month following the presidential elections, with 29 individuals hanged in a single day. The executions took place in two Iranian prisons on August 7, 2024, marking an unprecedented increase in the implementation of death sentences in the Islamic Republic.
Human rights sources and the Iran Human Rights organization, based in Norway, reported that the death sentences of 29 prisoners were carried out in Qezelhesar and Karaj Central prisons. Among those executed were at least two Afghan nationals and one Baluch citizen. The charges against the executed individuals were primarily “premeditated murder,” “drugs,” and “violent rape.” These individuals had previously been sentenced to death or retribution in kind in ambiguous and non-transparent processes with significant legal flaws.
The death sentences of 26 men in Qezelhesar prison in Karaj and three other men in Karaj Central prison were carried out collectively. Among these executed individuals were two Afghan citizens accused of “violent rape.”
Unprecedented Execution Rates
The Iran Human Rights organization, in a report published on August 8, wrote that “at least 87 people have been executed in Iranian prisons one month after the presidential elections.” The human rights institution has warned that “unprecedented executions of prisoners under the shadow of tension between Iran and Israel” have accelerated and called for “the immediate attention of the global community to the killing machine in Iran.”
Political Prisoners Protest
Political prisoners incarcerated in Iranian prisons have responded to the surge in executions by launching a hunger strike. This protest, known as “No to Execution Tuesdays,” began on the 28th week of the campaign on August 7, coinciding with the execution of Reza Rasaei. The hunger strike is held every Wednesday to protest against the death penalty and draw domestic and international public attention to the “inhumane punishment of execution.” This campaign was initiated by political prisoners in Iran and has been growing every week, with more prisoners from various Iranian prisons joining the strike.
A Historic Level of Group Executions
The group execution of 26 prisoners in one day in a single prison is unprecedented in the past two decades. The last group execution on this scale occurred on July 3, 2009, amidst the public protests of that year, known as the Green Movement. On that day, 20 prisoners were collectively executed in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj on charges related to “drugs.”
The recent surge in executions in Iran is a grim reminder of the country’s harsh penal system and the urgent need for international attention and intervention. As the Iran Human Rights organization warns, the “killing machine in Iran” is accelerating, and the global community must not turn a blind eye.
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