Iran | Man Executed for Drug Charges in Damghan, Unnamed Man Executed for Murder in Karaj

Baluch Allah Nazar Esmailzehi Executed for Drug Charges in Damghan

Allah Nazar Esmailzehi, a Baluch man sentenced to death for drug-related charges, was executed in Damghan Prison.

According to the Baluch Activists Campaign, a Baluch man was executed Damghan Prison in Semnan province on May 31. His identity has been reported as 33-year-old Allah Nazar Esmailzehi from Zahedan who was sentenced to death for drug-related charges.

He was not in possession of any drugs when arrested by Semnan traffic police in January 2019.

An informed source said: “The drugs that were registered to have belonged to Allah Nazar were discovered in an empty car the day after his arrest and had nothing to do with him. He was tortured by prison officials to make him accept the charges and force him into claiming the drugs belonged to him.”

At the time of writing, his execution has not 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.

None of the 2021 drug-related executions were reported by official sources.

Data gathered by Iran Human Rights also shows that Baluch prisoners accounted for 21% of all executions in 2021, while only representing 2–6% of Iran’s population.

Unnamed Man Executed for Murder in Karaj

Official sources have reported the execution of an unnamed man for murder in Karaj Penitentiary.

According to Rokna, a man was executed in Karaj Penitentiary on May 29. The unnamed 22-year-old man was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.

The executed man is reported to have arranged to meet his fiancée in a park in Karaj on the day of the murder in September 2019. His path was suddenly blocked by a group of young men who attacked him on the pretext that he was harassing a girl (his fiancée). To defend himself, he pulled out a knife, stabbing and killing one of the attackers and fled the scene.

According to data gathered by Iran Human Rights, at least 183 people were executed on murder charges in 2021. 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.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, June 1, 2022

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