Skip to main content

Iran | Executions in Khorramabad, Gachsaran, Arak

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); January 17, 2025: The execution of a prisoner named Mohammad Amiri-Bahravand, who had been sentenced to death (qisas) for "premeditated murder," was carried out on Thursday morning at Khorramabad Central Prison (Parsilon). Earlier, the execution of two other prisoners on the same day had been reported.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), the death sentence of Mohammad Amiri-Bahravand, a 32-year-old man, was carried out at Khorramabad Central Prison on Thursday, January 16. He had been sentenced to qisas for "premeditated murder."

A knowledgeable source told Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), “Mohammad Amiri-Bahravand was from Lorestan and had been arrested four years ago on charges of murdering a relative. He was sentenced to qisas.”

With the execution of Mohammad Amiri-Bahravand, the total number of executions on Thursday at Khorramabad Central Prison has risen to three.

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by Iranian domestic media or official sources at the time of writing this report.

The lack of classification for murder charges in Iran means that all murder cases, regardless of circumstances, severity, or motive, can result in a death sentence.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), the death sentences of two men were carried out at Khorramabad Central Prison on the morning of Thursday, January 16. The two prisoners have been identified as Saman Davoudian, 31, and Rashid Zeynabi, 36, both sentenced to qisas for "premeditated murder."

A knowledgeable source told Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), “Saman Davoudian was from Aligudarz and belonged to the Hassanvand tribe of Lorestan. He was arrested six years ago on murder charges and sentenced to death. Rashid Zeynabi was from Borujerd, arrested four years ago on murder charges, and sentenced to qisas. He was the father of one child.”

The execution of these two prisoners has not been reported by Iranian domestic media or official sources at the time of writing this report.

Execution in Gachsaran 


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); January 15, 2025: In October of last year, the execution of a prisoner with disabilities named Ebrahim Shooli, who had been sentenced to death on drug-related charges, was carried out secretly and without public notice in Gachsaran Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), the death sentence of a man was carried out at Gachsaran Prison on the morning of Sunday, October 27. The identity of the prisoner, sentenced to death on drug-related charges, has been confirmed as Ebrahim Shooli.

A knowledgeable source told Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), “Ebrahim Shooli had a disability and had lost one of his legs. He was arrested four years ago on drug-related charges and sentenced to death.”

The source added, “Ebrahim Shooli’s execution was carried out without allowing a final meeting or farewell with his family.”

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by Iranian domestic media or official sources at the time of writing this report.

The number of prisoners executed on drug-related charges has risen sharply and consistently over the past four years. In 2023, there was an 84% increase compared to 2022, when 256 people were executed for drug-related offenses. In 2023, this number reached 471.

Execution in Arak


Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); January 14, 2025: The execution of a prisoner named Pouya Asgari, who had been sentenced to death on drug-related charges, was carried out at Arak Central Prison.

According to a report by HRANA News Agency, the death sentence of a man was carried out at Arak Central Prison on the morning of Sunday, January 12. The identity of the prisoner, sentenced to death on drug-related charges, has been confirmed as 37-year-old Pouya Asgari.

The report, quoting informed sources, stated, “This prisoner had been arrested in 2020 on charges related to drug offenses and was subsequently sentenced to death by the judiciary.”

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by Iranian domestic media or official sources at the time of writing this report.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, January 14-17, 2025

_____________________________________________________________________








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

— Oscar Wilde



Comments

Most viewed (Last 7 days)

Who Gets Hanged in Singapore?

Singapore’s death penalty has been in the news again.  Enshrined in law in 1975, a decade after the island split from Malaysia and became an independent state, the penalty can see people sentenced to hang for drug trafficking, murder or firearms offenses, among other crimes. Executions have often involved trafficking under the Misuse of Drugs Act, with offenses measured in grams.  Those executed have included people from low-income backgrounds and foreign nationals who are sometimes not fluent in English, according to human rights advocates such as Amnesty International and the International Drug Policy Consortium. 

Burkina Faso to bring back death penalty

Burkina Faso's military rulers will bring back the death penalty, which was abolished in 2018, the country's Council of Ministers announced on Thursday. "This draft penal code reinstates the death penalty for a number of offences, including high treason, acts of terrorism, acts of espionage, among others," stated the information service of the Burkinabe government. Burkina Faso last carried out an execution in 1988.

China | Former Chinese senior banker Bai Tianhui executed for taking US$155 million in bribes

Bai is the second senior figure from Huarong to be put to death for corruption following the execution of Lai Xiaomin in 2021 China has executed a former senior banker who was found guilty of taking more than 1.1 billion yuan (US$155 million) in bribes. Bai Tianhui, the former general manager of the asset management firm China Huarong International Holdings, was executed on Tuesday after the Supreme People’s Court approved the sentence, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Tennessee executes Harold Wayne Nichols

Thirty-seven years after confessing to a series of rapes and the murder of Karen Pulley, Nichols expressed remorse in final words Strapped to a gurney in the execution chamber at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution Thursday morning, Harold Wayne Nichols made a final statement.  “To the people I’ve harmed, I’m sorry,” he said, according to prison officials and media witnesses. “To my family, know that I love you. I know where I’m going to. I’m ready to go home.”

Oklahoma board recommends clemency for inmate set to be executed next week

A voting board in Oklahoma decided Wednesday to recommend clemency for Tremane Wood, a death row inmate who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection next week at the state penitentiary in McAlester.  Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf, a migrant farmworker, at an Oklahoma City hotel on New Year's Eve, court records show. The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state's top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood's clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers carry out public execution in sports stadium

The man had been convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including children, and was executed by one of their relatives, according to police. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities carried out the public execution of a man on Tuesday convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including several children, earlier this year. Tens of thousands of people attended the execution at a sports stadium in the eastern city of Khost, which the Supreme Court said was the eleventh since the Taliban seized power in 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of US and NATO forces.

Afghanistan | Two Sons Of Executed Man Also Face Death Penalty, Says Taliban

The Taliban governor’s spokesperson in Khost said on Tuesday that two sons of a man executed earlier that day have also been sentenced to death. Their executions, he said, have been postponed because the heir of the victims is not currently in Afghanistan. Mostaghfer Gurbaz, spokesperson for the Taliban governor in Khost, also released details of the charges against the man executed on Tuesday, identified as Mangal. He said Mangal was accused of killing members of a family.

Utah | Ralph Menzies dies on death row less than 3 months after his execution was called off

Judge was set to consider arguments in December about Menzies’ mental fitness  Ralph Menzies, who spent more than 3 decades on Utah’s death row for the 1986 murder of Maurine Hunsaker, has died.  Menzies, 67, died of “presumed natural causes at a local hospital” Wednesday afternoon, according to the Utah Department of Corrections.  Matt Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker’s son, said Menzies’ death “was a complete surprise.”  “First off, I’d say that I’m numb. And second off, I would say, grateful,” Hunsaker told Utah News Dispatch. “I’m grateful that my family does not have to endure this for the holidays.” 

Iran | Child Bride Saved from the Gallows After Blood Money Raised Through Donations, Charities

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); December 9, 2025: Goli Kouhkan, a 25-year-old undocumented Baluch child bride who was scheduled to be executed within weeks, has been saved from the gallows after the diya (blood money) was raised in time. According to the judiciary’s Mizan News Agency , the plaintiffs in the case of Goli Kouhkan, have agreed to forgo their right to execution as retribution. In a video, the victim’s parents are seen signing the relevant documents. Goli’s lawyer, Parand Gharahdaghi, confirmed in a social media post that the original 10 billion (approx. 100,000 euros) toman diya was reduced to 8 billion tomans (approx. 80,000 euros) and had been raised through donations and charities.

Iran carries out public hanging of "double-rapist"

Iran on Tuesday publicly executed a man after convicting him of raping two women in the northern province of Semnan. The execution was carried out in the town of Bastam after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict, the judiciary's official outlet Mizan Online reported. Mizan cited the head of the provincial judiciary, Mohammad Akbari, as saying the ruling had been 'confirmed and enforced after precise review by the Supreme Court'. The provincial authority said the man had 'deceived two women and committed rape by force and coercion', adding that he used 'intimidation and threats' to instil fear of reputational harm in the victims.