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Women Being Sent to the Gallows in Alarming Numbers in Iran

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Many Were Child Brides Hanged for Murder of Abusive Husbands From Whom There Was No Protection  December 18, 2024 — Amidst a huge surge in executions in the Islamic Republic— 862 so far in 2024, the highest per capita execution rate globally—the Iranian authorities are now increasingly including women in those it sends to the gallows. Since the start of 2024, Iran has executed at least 29 women. More executions of women may have taken place that are unknown.

Iran : juvenile offenders executions - exécution des mineurs

IRAN: Juvenile offenders

The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty denounces the new decision of the Iranian government to continue sentencing juvenile offenders to death for murder. It deplores that Iran went back on its first statement and urges the Iranian government to respect its international commitments and to completely abolish capital punishment for juvenile offenders regardless of the offence allegedly committed.

On October 16, following Ayatollah Shahroudi’s circular, Hossein Zabhi, the Assistant Attorney General for Judicial Affairs in Iran announced that no one under the age of 18 would be sentenced to death any longer, irrespective of the type of crime allegedly committed. Such a circular, however, is not legally binding and its application remains unsure as it happened in the past for the circular banning stoning.

Iran ratified both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child years ago. They both prohibit the death penalty for crimes committed by persons under age 18 at the time of the offence.

Three days later, Hossein Zabhi went back on this statement and distinguished between murder and other offences punishable by death under Iranian law such as rape, theft, drug trafficking, or adultery. He explained that capital punishment for murder was the victims’ family responsibility to decide («qisat»).

Iranian law treats these cases as private disputes between two civil parties, where the state facilitates the resolution of the dispute. The victim’s survivors retain the right to claim retribution in kind, or to pardon the killer.

Iran is currently the only known country in the world where executions of juvenile offenders took place in 2008, at least 6 executions this year according to Amnesty International.

In 2007, at least 8 juvenile offenders and 317 people were executed in Iran. At least 140 juvenile offenders are still believed to be on death row in Iran according to the organisation Stop Child Executions.

The majority of juvenile executions in Iran are for intentional murder or for ‘hadd’ crimes including adultery, incest, rape, sodomy, or homosexuality according to Human Rights Watch.

The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty

THE WORLD COALITION AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty was created in Rome on 13 May 2002 and is composed of 75 NGOs, bar associations, local authorities and trade unions. It aims to strengthen the international dimension of the struggle against the death penalty and to contribute to bringing a definitive end to death sentences and executions. The World Coalition particularly endeavours to facilitate the creation or development of national coalitions against the death penalty. 10 October has been established as the World Day Against the Death Penalty since 2003. This totally decentralised event, which has particular presence in countries where the death penalty is still applied, invites citizens and organizations who want to say ‘NO’ to the death penalty to organise their own events on 10 October.
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IRAN : exécution des mineurs

La Coalition mondiale contre la peine de mort dĂ©nonce la nouvelle dĂ©cision de l’Iran de continuer Ă  condamner des mineurs Ă  la peine de mort pour meurtre. Elle regrette que l'Iran soit revenu sur sa première dĂ©claration et incite le gouvernement iranien Ă  respecter ses engagements internationaux et Ă  renoncer Ă  condamner des mineurs Ă  la peine de mort quel que soit le crime pour lequel ils sont poursuivis.

Le 16 octobre, Hossein Zabhi, ministre adjoint des Affaires judiciaires en Iran, avait annoncĂ© que d’après une circulaire de l’Ayatollah Shahroudi, les personnes âgĂ©es de moins de dix-huit ans ne seraient plus condamnĂ©es Ă  la peine capitale, quelle que soit la nature du crime dont elles sont accusĂ©es. Une telle circulaire n’a cependant pas force de loi, et son application en pratique reste incertaine, comme cela a Ă©tĂ© le cas par le passĂ© pour la circulaire interdisant la lapidation.

La Coalition rappelle que l’Iran a ratifiĂ© la Convention relative aux droits de l’enfant et le Pacte international relatif aux droits civils et politiques, qui interdisent la peine capitale pour les infractions commises par des personnes âgĂ©es de moins de dix-huit ans.

Hossein Zabhi est revenu sur sa dĂ©claration trois jours plus tard en distinguant le meurtre des autres crimes punissables de mort selon la loi iranienne, comme le viol, le vol Ă  main armĂ©e, le trafic de drogue ou encore l’adultère. Il a expliquĂ© que la condamnation Ă  mort pour meurtre Ă©tait du seul ressort de la famille de la victime («qisat»).

La loi du talion est reconnue par la législation, mais la famille de la victime est seule compétente pour faire appliquer ou non un verdict de condamnation à mort, car elle peut accorder le pardon au meurtrier dont la peine est alors commuée en emprisonnement.
L’Iran est actuellement le seul pays connu au monde qui a exĂ©cutĂ© des mineurs dĂ©linquants en 2008, au moins six selon Amnesty International.

En 2007, l’Iran a exĂ©cutĂ© au moins 8 mineurs et 317 personnes. Ă€ ce jour, au moins 140 mineurs sont toujours dans les couloirs de la mort selon l’organisation Stop Child Executions.

La majoritĂ© des exĂ©cutions de mineurs ont lieu pour meurtres avec intension ou pour certains crimes ‘hadd’ tels que l’adultère, l’inceste, le viol, la sodomie, ou l’homosexualitĂ©, selon Human Rights Watch.


The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty

LA COALITION MONDIALE CONTRE LA PEINE DE MORT : ComposĂ©e de 76 ONG, barreaux d'avocats, collectivitĂ©s locales et syndicats, la Coalition fut crĂ©Ă©e Ă  Rome le 13 mai 2002. La Coalition vise Ă  renforcer la dimension internationale du combat contre la peine de mort, et Ă  contribuer Ă  la suppression dĂ©finitive des condamnations Ă  mort et des exĂ©cutions. Pour ce faire, elle facilite notamment la constitution et le dĂ©veloppement de coalitions nationales et rĂ©gionales contre la peine de mort. Depuis 2003, la Coalition a instaurĂ© le 10 octobre comme JournĂ©e mondiale contre la peine de mort. Cet Ă©vènement totalement dĂ©centralisĂ©, qui se tient notamment dans les pays qui appliquent toujours la peine de mort, invite les citoyens et les associations qui veulent dire « NON » Ă  la peine de mort Ă  organiser leurs propres initiatives le 10 octobre.

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