Afghan Couple Hadigheh Abadi and Younes Mazarshams Hanged for Drug Offences

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man and a woman were hanged in Qazvin (Choobindar) Central Prison on 11 September 2025. Their identitites have been established as Hadigheh Abadi and her 46-year-old husband, Younes Mazarshams.

The couple were both from Harat and had been living in Iran for 20 years, working as building caretakers in Karaj’s Taleghan. They were arrested on drug-related charges with three of their children four years ago. Their three children were deported to Afghanistan a few months after their arrests.

At the time of writing, their executions have not 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. At least 426 people were executed for drug-related offences in the first eight months of 2025.