Iran: Keyvanullah Moradi, 28, executed in Sanandaj

According to IHR, the death sentence of a prisoner was carried out in Sanandaj Central Prison on Monday, April 27, 2020. The identity of the prisoner, who was sentenced to retribution on charges of "premeditated murder", has been established as 28-year-old Keyvanullah Moradi.

According to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, Keyvanullah Moradi was the father of a 6-year-old child from the village of Bulbalabad in Dehgolan. He was transferred from Qorveh Prison to Sanandaj Central Prison last year.

Speaking to Hengaw, which first published the news, Keyvanullah Moradi's wife confirmed the news of his execution. She told the human rights website that Keyvanullah had been arrested for killing a Qorveh citizen in a street fight five years ago and sentenced to death by the Sanandaj Criminal Court.

At the time of publishing this article, Keyvanullah’s execution has not been announced or acknowledged by either government officials or media outlets inside Iran.

It is worth noting that from May 3 to 5, three prisoners were executed in the same prison. While the number of executions typically decrease during Ramadan, the numbers have intensified in recent days. This is while the spread of COVID-19 will also mean that the families of those executed will be unable to hold funerals to mourn their loved ones.

According to Iran Human Rights’ annual report, at least 225 of the 280 of those executed in 2019 were charged with "premeditated murder." As there are no legal distinctions made between murder and manslaughter, whether voluntary or involuntary in Iran, those charged under the umbrella term of “premeditated murder” will receive the death penalty regardless of intent (mens rea) and the circumstances.