3 Ethnic Minorities Hanged for Drug Offences in Bandarabbas

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, three men were hanged in Bandarabbas Central Prison on 15 April 2025. Their identities have been established as Peyman Naderi, a 28-year-old Kurdish man from Kermanshah, Karim Esmaili (right photo), a Kurdish man from Eslamabad-e-Gharb and Ayoub Barniani (left photo), a Baluch man from Rameshk.

They were arrested in separate cases and sentenced to death on drug-related charges. Peyman was arrested two years ago, and Karim and Ayoub were arrested three years ago.

At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2024 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 503 people were executed for drug-related charges, of which only under 3% were announced by official sources. 17% of all drug-related executions in 2024 were Baluch minorities while they represent 2-6% of Iran’s population.