Iran | Executions in Saravan, Isfahan, Shiraz, Zahedan, Zanjan, Gorgan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 13, 2023: Amin Barakzehi, a Baluch man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, was executed in Saravan Prison.

According to Haal Vsh, a man was executed in Saravan Prison on 11 November. His identity has been reported as 40-year-old Amin Barakzehi (Nourzehi) who was sentenced to qisas for murder.

He was arrested for murder in Saravan around five years ago.

At the time of writing, his execution has 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. Furthermore, at least 274 Baluch people have been executed for drug-related charges since 2021, 40% of all drug executions in that time period.

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, as the plaintiffs, the victim’s family are required to choose between death as retribution, diya (blood money) or forgiveness.

Unidentified Man Executed in Isfahan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 12, 2023: A man only identified as Alireza was executed for murder charges in Isfahan Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Isfahan Central Prison (Dastgerd) on 12 November. His identity has only been established as Alireza (surname unknown) who had spent around four years on death row. He was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder by the Criminal Court.

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

Two executed in Shiraz

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 12, 2023: Vahid Salemi and Behrouz Dinarbar were executed for drug-related charges in Shiraz Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Shiraz Central Prison on 12 November. Their identities have been established as 35-year-old Vahid Salemi from Sadra (Fars province) and 50-year-old Behrouz Dinarbar from Kahnuj (Kerman province) who were both sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court. Behrouz had been on death row for around six years and Vahid for around three years. They had their last family visits the day prior to their executions.

At the time of writing, the two men’s executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year for the past three years. At least 305 people were executed for drug-related charges between 1 January-10 October 2023, a 69% increase compared to the same period in 2022, and the number of drug-related executions in 2023 were close to 20 times higher than 2020.

The number of drug executions dramatically dropped in 2018 following a 2017 Amendment to the Anti-Narcotics Laws. Consequently, drug executions ranged between 24-30 per annum between 2018-2020. The Amendment was reversed in practice in 2021 when executions increased ten-fold to 126 in 2021 and doubled again in 2022 with 256 drug-related executions. On 13 September 2023, IHRNGO reported a 94% rise in the number of drug-related executions in the year following the start of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement in September 2022.

Two executed in Zahedan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 11, 2023: Afghan national, Reza Arbabzehi and Abdolhagh Gomshadzehi, a Baluch minority, were executed for murder charges in Zahedan Central Prison. Meisam Chandani was previously reported to have been executed at the prison that day.

According to Haal Vsh, two men were executed in Zahedan Central Prison on 11 November. Their identities have been reported as Abdolhagh Gomshadzehi, a 33-year-old Baluch man and Reza Arbabzehi, a 23-year-old Afghan national.

Reza was arrested around three years ago and Abdolhagh around two years ago. They were both sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.

Meisam Chandani, a Baluch man sentenced to death for charges of moharebeh (enmity against god), was previously reported to have been executed at the prison that day.

It is important to note that Afghan nationals constitute the largest group of non-Iranian executions and death row cases in Iranian prisons. In 2021, no execution of Afghan nationals was recorded until September, when five men were executed in the space of 35 days. On 10 October 2021, Iran Human Rights expressed its concern that the Taliban takeover in August had facilitated the execution of Afghan nationals. That number more than tripled in 2022, with 16 Afghan nationals including a juvenile offender and a woman executed. At least 7 Afghans have been executed in 2023 so far, with two publicly hanged on 8 July.

Man executed in Zanjan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 11, 2023: Hojat Gharebiglu, a 62-year-old man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, was executed in Zanjan Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Zanjan Central Prison on 9 November. His identity has been established as 62-year-old Hojat Gharebiglu who was sentenced to qisas for murder.

An informed source told Iran Human Rights: “Hojat Gharebiglu was from Ardabil but lived in Tabriz. He worked on a cattle farm with his son prior to arrest. His son fell in love with a girl in the village and because her family didn’t approve, they ran away together. The girl’s two brothers attacked Hojat in retaliation and he shot them with a rifle, causing one of their deaths.”

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

Baluch Meisam Chandani Executed in Zahedan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 11, 2023: Meisam Chandani, a Baluch man who spent 12 years on death row for moharebeh (enmity against god) charges, was executed in Zahedan Central Prison despite suffering from acute mental illness due to year-long torture to extract forced confessions.

According to Haal Vsh, a Baluch man was executed in Zahedan Central Prison on 11 November. His identity has been reported as Meisam Chandani (Dehghani) who was sentenced to death for charges of moharebeh through armed action, membership in opposition groups (Jondollah) and action against national security.

He was arrested on 28 August 2011. Informed sources said: “Meisam endured a year of physical and psychological torture in the Intelligence’s detention centre in Zahedan. They used the “miracle bed” (prisoners are tied to a metal bed and lashed with a fan belts until they confess) and flogging and beating him with cables and plastic pipes. It caused him severe mental illness and memory loss, he’d lost his mental balance.”

Meisam Chandani was transferred from the Security Ward (9) of the prison for execution. There is no news about the fate of a murder death row prisoner transferred with Meisam.

Tasnim news agency has reported his execution without naming him. According to their report, the defendant was arrested for the murder of three policemen in 2011.

Execution in Gorgan

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 10, 2023: Shahram Ali Abbasi, a man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, was executed in Gorgan Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Gorgan Central Prison on 8 November. His identity has been established as 38-year-old Shahram Ali Abbasi from Langroud.

Per IHRNGO sources, he was arrested for murder charges and sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind).

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

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, November 10-13, 2023

_____________________________________________________________________

Twitter/X | Facebook | Telegram | Contact Us

Two Executions In Six Hours: Florida Set For Historical Double Execution Tuesday

Florida is preparing to execute two death row inmates on Tuesday, July 28, in an action that would mark the state’s first double execution in more than 60 years. Former police officer James Duckett, 68, is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 12 p.m., followed six hours later by 80-year-old Dominick Occhicone at 6 p.m. If carried out, these will mark the 39th and 40th executions under Gov. Ron DeSantis and the 11th and 12th in the state since the beginning of 2026. In response, Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (FADP) has launched petition and letter-writing efforts asking DeSantis to halt both procedures. The group has organized two public vigils outside Florida State Prison in Raiford, set for 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., contingent on whether stays are issued.

Florida executes Dominick Occhicone

Florida executes 2 men in a day. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has made Florida's death chamber the nation’s busiest at the end of his final term. STARKE, Fla. — Florida on Tuesday became the first state in nearly a decade to carry out two executions in a single day, the last an 80-year-old man who was the second-oldest inmate known to receive a lethal injection in modern U.S. history. Hours earlier, the state executed a former police officer convicted of killing a young girl.

Florida | 49 years on death row, killer of Bonita Springs teen learns death date

A Fort Myers man on death row for nearly five decades learned his execution date as Gov. Ron DeSantis signed his order Thursday, July 30. Harold Gene Lucas, then 24, shot and killed his 16-year-old girlfriend, Anthia Jill Piper in Bonita Springs on August 14, 1976. Lucas was 24 when he was charged in Piper's shooting death at her parents' home on Aug. 14, 1976. The execution is set for Sept. 1 in a state that has accelerated its pace under DeSantis the past two years, with a record of 19 executions in 2025. Piper was shot seven times by Lucas, who claimed to be intoxicated.

Florida executes James Duckett

Double execution: 1st of 2 inmates is put to death in Florida Florida has executed James Duckett, a 68-year-old former cop convicted of killing an 11-year-old girl in 1987. The state is set to execute an 80-year-old man 6 hours later for a 1986 murder. Florida carried out the 1st double execution in more than 60 years, executing former police officer James Duckett and later scheduling the execution of 80‑year‑old Dominick Occhicone, amid Governor Ron DeSantis’s aggressive push to increase death penalties in the state. Florida has put to death the 1st of 2 inmates in the state's 1st double execution in more than 60 years amid an aggressive death penalty push by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Florida | Former warden recalls botched electrocution that left him battling PTSD for 13 years and turned him into an abolitionist

Ron McAndrew anticipated it would be just another standard execution. He had been assigned to carry out the death of Cuban refugee Pedro Medina via electric chair within the confines of Florida State Prison. Fifteen years had passed since Medina's conviction for the murder of 52-year-old Dorothy James, and McAndrew's responsibility was to oversee the administration of lethal electrical currents to his brain. Having already supervised two previous executions using the identical procedure and raised in a community that strongly supported capital punishment, he expected a swift conclusion with justice delivered.

Iran erects iron gallows in Isfahan protest square

An iron gallows has been erected in an Isfahan square where protests erupted in January. Families of several of the 10 remaining prisoners sentenced to death have been summoned for farewell visits. An iron gallows erected in Ali-Khani Square in the central Iranian city of Isfahan has raised fears that the regime is preparing to publicly execute protesters arrested during nationwide demonstrations in January. Sources who spoke with Iran International said large numbers of security forces had been deployed in the area, while the families of several prisoners sentenced to death had been summoned to the prison for farewell visits.

North Korea | 'I was only 9': North Korean defector recalls childhood memory of public execution

Kim Eun-joo was 9 years old when her teacher stopped their lesson and told the class to follow her outside. The children were marched to a public execution ground in North Korea. “I would cry even when our family dog died,” Kim said in a recent interview with The Korea Times. “But the first time I watched humans killing a human, I had no words for what I was feeling. It was the most brutal scene I have ever seen, in any movie or in real life.” The memory has stayed with her ever since. Now a human rights advocate after defecting from North Korea, Kim recently brought that childhood scene to the 9th World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Paris, where North Korea’s use of public executions and capital punishment was officially placed on the agenda for the first time.

USA | What happens in the final weeks before an execution? These reporters were inside the room.

The journalists behind ‘The Last 12 Weeks’ earned extraordinary access to a death penalty defense team—and faced difficult ethical choices Many defense lawyers are naturally cagey. They work in a pressure cooker, protecting their clients’ rights while fighting for the best possible outcome. And arguably, the stakes can’t get any higher than trying to save a client’s life. So no, defense lawyers don’t usually invite journalists into strategy meetings. But that’s what happened when Marshall Project reporter Maurice Chammah and Serial Productions senior producer Alvin Melathe spent the final few months before a Texas execution embedded with a capital defense team.

19 July 1943 | Auschwitz's Largest Public Hanging: 12 Polish Prisoners Executed in Escape Reprisal

OSWIECIM, Poland — The SS carried out the largest public hanging in Auschwitz history on July 19, 1943, executing 12 Polish prisoners before other inmates as collective punishment for escapes and civilian contacts. The victims, all from the camp’s surveyors’ labor unit, were hanged on gallows built in front of the camp kitchen during an Auschwitz I roll call. The SS orchestrated this reprisal following prisoner escapes from the surveyors’ detail and unauthorized communication between inmates and civilians. Camp authorities used the recent escapes as a pretext to impose collective punishment.

Idaho | How Bryan Kohberger’s Guilty Plea Move Could Be His Death Sentence

If Bryan Kohberger successfully withdraws his guilty plea and goes to trial for the murders of four University of Idaho students, it could lead to him being sentenced to death, experts told Newsweek . Kohberger, 31, filed a handwritten petition on Monday from the Idaho Maximum Security Penitentiary, where he is serving four consecutive life sentences for the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Madison Mogen in a rental home near the university's campus in Moscow, Idaho, in 2022. Kohberger pleaded guilty to the fatal stabbings just over a year ago, a month before jury selection was set to start.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog