May Bloodiest Month in more than 5 Years, 90 Executions in 18 Days
Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 18, 2023: Jamshid Karimi and Mostafa Salehi were executed for murder charges in Sanandaj Central Prison. 13 executions have so far been recorded by Iran Human Rights today.
This is while at least 90 people have been executed in the first 18 days of May, making it the bloodiest month since July 2017.
Condemning the unusually high rate of executions, Iran Human Rights calls on the international community to use all its powers to stop the Islamic Republic’s killing machine.
Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “What we’re witnessing in Iran are not executions, but extrajudicial mass-killings to create societal fear to maintain power. In order to stop the Islamic Republic’s killing machine, firm and concrete action is needed by the international community and not just expressions of regret and condemnations.”
According to Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Sanandaj Central Prison on 18 May. Their identities have been established as Jamshid Karimi and Mostafa Salehi who were both sentenced to qisas(retribution-in-kind) for murder.
An informed source told Iran Human Rights: “Jamshid Karimi was arrested for murder five years ago. The victim’s family had agreed to accept 4 billion tomans as diya (blood money), he was going to be saved from execution. They even returned him to his cell 48 hours before his execution but was taken out again and executed.”
At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
At least 13 people were executed in Khorramabad, Rasht, Kerman, Jiroft and Sanandaj prisons today.
According to the 2022 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 582 people were executed in Iran. Of those, 288 were executed for murder charges.
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.
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