Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); June 16, 2022: Four more men have been confirmed to have been executed for murder in Rajai Shahr Prison yesterday, increasing the number of executions to 12. At least 62 people were executed in Iranian prisons in the first two weeks of June.
Iran Human Rights reported the execution of eight men in Rajai Shahr Prison yesterday. Newly obtained information confirms the execution of a further four men.
All 12 prisoners were sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.
The identities of the four men have been established as Abbas Eskandarzadeh, Amir Jafari, Jamshid Akbari and Avaz Mohammadi. Iran Human Rights had previously also identified 25-year-old Mohammad Shokri and 24-year-old Ali Gholami. It continues its endeavours to establish the identities of the other six men.
At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
At least 62 people have been executed in Iranian prisons in the last two weeks. Iran Human Rights had warned about the dramatic rise in executions since the nationwide protests began on 7 May.
According to data gathered by Iran Human Rights, at least 183 people were executed on murder charges in 2021. Those charged with the umbrella term of “intentional murder” are sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) regardless of intent or circumstances due to a lack of grading in law. Once a defendant has been convicted, the victim’s family are required to choose between death as retribution, diya (blood money) or forgiveness.