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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 | Executions in Shiraz, Salmas, Isfahan

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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 20, 2024: Mojtaba Pouyande, Mostafa Aghayi, Nader Ghorbani and an unidentified Afghan national were executed for murder and drug charges in Shiraz Central Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, four men were executed in Shiraz (Adel Abad) Central Prison on 19 May. 

Three of the men have been identified as Mojtaba Jouyandeh, around 40 years old, 35-year-old Mostafa Aghayi and 28-year-old Nader Ghorbani. The fourth man who was an Afghan national has not been identified at the time of writing.

Mojtaba and Mostafa were sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder. Nader and the unidentified Afghan man were on death row for murder or drug charges.

All four men were on death row for 3-4 years and had been transferred to Shiraz Central Prison for execution from Pirbanu Prison.

IHRNGO previously reported that around 50 men were on death row in Pirbanu Prison and prisoners were told that 15-20 of them would soon be transferred to Shiraz Central Prison for execution.

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

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2023 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 471 people were executed for drug-related charges, an 84% increase compared to 2022 (256) and about 18 times the average of drug-related executions in 2018-2020.

On 10 April 2024, 80+ Iranian and international organisations and groups called for joint action to stop drug-related executions, urging UNODC to make “any cooperation with the Islamic Republic contingent on a complete halt on drug-related executions.”

Executions in Salmas


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 19, 2024: Asghar Hajizadeh and Kaveh Bashangeh were executed for drug-related charges in Salmas Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Salmas Prison on 18 May. Their identities have been established as Asghar Hajizadeh and Kaveh Bashangeh who were sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Courts.

Asghar Hajizadeh was from Salmas and had spent five years on death row. Kaveh Bashangeh was from Mahabad and arrested four years ago.

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

Execution in Isfahan


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 18, 2024: Yaser Abdollahi, a man sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, was executed Isfahan Central Prison. Shahriar Moradi is awaiting the gallows at the prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was executed in Isfahan (Dastgerd) Central Prison on 18 May. His identity has been established as 51-year-old Yaser  Abdollahi from Falavarjan who was sentenced to qisas for murder.

An informed source told IHRNGO: “Yaser Abdollahi was arrested for murder four years ago. He had three children.”

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

Yaser was transferred to the pre-execution solitary cells with another prisoner named Shahriar Moradi who is still awaiting the gallows.

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.

In 2023, at least 282 people including two juvenile offenders and 15 women, were executed for murder charges, the second highest number of qisas executions since 2010. Only 20% of the recorded qisas executions were announced by official sources. In 2023, Iran Human Rights also recorded 857 cases of families choosing diya or forgiveness instead of qisas executions.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, May 18-20, 2024

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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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