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U.S. | 'I comfort death row inmates in their final moments - the execution room is like a house of horrors'

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Reverend Jeff Hood, 40, wants to help condemned inmates 'feel human again' and vows to continue his efforts to befriend murderers in spite of death threats against his family A reverend who has made it his mission to comfort death row inmates in their final days has revealed the '"moral torture" his endeavor entails. Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood, 40, lives with his wife and five children in Little Rock, Arkansas. But away from his normal home life, he can suddenly find himself holding the shoulder of a murderer inside an execution chamber, moments away from the end of their life. 

Iran | Four Hanged in Kerman, Man Executed in Urmia

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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 26, 2023: Four men have been executed for drug-related charges in Kerman Central Prison.

According to Hal Vash, four men were executed in Kerman Central Prison on 25 May. Their identities have been reported as Baluch minorities Ali Shahriari, 40 and Ghaderbakhsh Dehani, 39, and Abdolrasould Jamishidi, 55 and Ali Salari.

They were all sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court. Ghaderbakhsh Dehani was on death row for around five years and Abdolrasoul Jamishidi was arrested around three years ago.

At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Ethnic minorities, the Baluch in particular, are grossly overrepresented in execution numbers in Iran. In 2022, at least 174 Baluch minorities including 3 women, were executed in 22 prisons across Iran, making up 30% of overall executions. This is while they represent just 2-6% of Iran’s population.

Baluch minorities also represented almost half of drug-related executions in 2022. 47.3% of the 256 people executed for drug-related charges were Baluch.

According to the 2022 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 256 people were executed for drug-related offences in 2022, a more than two-fold increase compared to 2021 (126) and ten times more than 2020 (25).

Man Executed in Urmia


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 25, 2023: Ali Piri who was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, has been executed in Urmia Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Urmia (Darya) Central Prison on 25 May. His identity has been established as 40-year-old Ali Piri who was sentenced to qisas for murder.

An informed source told Iran Human Rights that Ali Piri was arrested around three years ago.

At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

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.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, May 25, 2023


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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde
Location: Iran
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