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U.S. | I'm a Death Row Pastor. They're Just Ordinary Folks

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In the early 1970s I was a North Carolinian, white boy from the South attending Union Theological Seminary in New York City, and working in East Harlem as part of a program. In my senior year, I visited men at the Bronx House of Detention. I had never been in a prison or jail, but people in East Harlem were dealing with these places and the police all the time. This experience truly turned my life around.

Iran | 5 executions in Karaj, Sabzevar

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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); January 8, 2024: Mohammad Hossein Geravand and Kiumars Gholami, two men on death row for drug-related charges, were executed in Ghezelhesar Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Ghezelhesar Prison in Karaj on 8 January. Their identities have been established as Mohammad Hossein Geravand and Kiumars Gholami who were sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

They were transferred from Ward 2 of the prison to solitary confinement in preparation for their executions the day prior.

At the time of writing, neither of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

On 21 December, IHRNGO warned of more drug executions being carried out after an Iranian MP from Lorestan province stated that the cases of 1000-2000 drug death row inmates were at implementation stage.

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.

Executions in Sabzevar


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); January 8, 2024: Amir Ahmadzadeh, Mehdi Keyvanlu and Hashem Zoorabadi were executed for murder and drug-related charges in Sabzevar Prison.

According to HRANA news agency, a man was executed in Sabzevar Prison on 3 January. His identity has been established as Amir Ahmadzadeh who was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.

Two other men were also executed at the prison on 22 December 2023. Their identities were reported as 46-year-old Mehdi Keyvanlu and 42-year-old Hashem Zoorabadi. Mehdi was on death row for drug-related charges and Hashem for murder.

At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

On 21 December, IHRNGO warned of more drug executions being carried out after an Iranian MP from Lorestan province stated that the cases of 1000-2000 drug death row inmates were at implementation stage.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, January 8, 2024


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Location: Iran
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