Iran | 5 Men Hanged for Drug Offences in Urmia; 3 Convicted Based on “Knowledge of the Judge”

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); November 10, 2025: Five men including four Kurdish minorities named Mohammadreza Badavi, Reza Molayi, Mehdi Hassani, Shamseddin (Shahab) Abbasi Kay and Havari Jahanara were executed for drug-related offences in Urmia Central Prison.

Three of the men were sentenced to death based on elme qazi (knowledge of the judge), a practice that violates basic due process by allowing a judge’s personal belief to replace evidence.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, three men were hanged in Urmia (Darya) Central Prison on 9 November 2025. Their identities have been established as Mohammadreza Badavi, a 48-year-old Kurdish father of four from the village of Kousa in Urmia, Reza Molayi, a 48-year-old Kurdish man from the village of Ghoulanji in Urmia, and Mehdi Hosseini, a 46-year-old Turkish man.

According to the Islamic Penal Code, when there is no confession or witness testimony in a case, the judge can make a decision based on his exclusive opinion, without any reference to laws and codes.

They were arrested for allegedly dealing drugs in a joint case six years ago. According to informed IHRNGO sources, “No drugs were ever discovered. They were sentenced to death on drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court based on elme qazi.”

Furthermore, two other men were hanged at the prison on 7 November. Their identities have been established as Shamseddin (Shahab) Abbasi Kay, a 50-year-old Kurdish man from the village of Kay in Urmia and Havari Jahanara, a Kurdish man from Sardasht. Shamseddin was arrested around two years ago and Havari, five years ago. They were sentenced to death on drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

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

According to the Islamic Penal Code, when there is no confession or witness testimony in a case, the judge can make a decision based on his exclusive opinion, without any reference to laws and codes. This is known as elm-e-qazi or “knowledge of the judge.” The law requires that rulings based on a judge’s “knowledge” derive from evidence, including circumstantial evidence, and not merely personal belief that the defendant is guilty of the crime. However, IHRNGO has recorded many cases where elm-e-qazi has been arbitrarily applied.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2024 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 503 people were executed for drug-related charges, of which only under 3% were announced by official sources. 17% of all drug-related executions in 2024 were Baluch minorities while they represent 2-6% of Iran’s population. At least 612 people were executed for drug-related offences in the first ten months of 2025.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Staff, November 10, 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

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