Baluch Prisoners Saeed Shehbakhsh and Ziaollah Barahouyi Executed in Damghan

According to Hal Vash, two Baluch men were executed Damghan Prison on July 29. Their identities have been reported as 35-year-old Ziaollah Barahouyi-Yagizehi and Saeed Shehbakhsh who were sentenced to death for drug-related charges in the same case.

Saeed Shehbakhsh and Ziaollah Barahouyi were arrested in Damghan around three years ago and had been transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for their executions on July 27.

At the time of writing, neither of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

According to reports compiled by Iran Human Rights, at least 126 people were executed on drug-related charges in 2021, a fivefold increase compared to drug executions in the previous three years. This trend has continued into 2022, with 91 executions recorded in the first six months of 2022, double the number for the same period in 2021 when 40 people were executed.

At least 251 including 6 women and 67 Baluch minorities were executed in the first six months of 2022. This is double the number of executions in the same period in 2021 when 117 people were executed.