On Sunday, 25 prisoners were hanged “en masse and in secret” at Ghezelhessar Prison in Karaj for drug-related charges, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reports.
The campaign calls on the judiciary to inform the public about these executions and end its “secrecy.”
As with the campaign’s earlier reports on secret hangings at Vakilabad and Birjand Prisons, the executions were carried out without the notification of the victims’ families and lawyers.
On Saturday, the head of the Justice Department in the northwestern province of Ardebil reported that 40 death sentences had been issued against drug offenders.
The Iranian judiciary has announced that it will deal firmly with drug charges and expedite death sentences for “armed robbers and drug dealers.”
The move has caused a sudden rise in the number of executions in Iran. The Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reports that so far this year, an average of 20 people have been executed each week in Iran.
