Death Penalty News

Iranian authorities have secretly executed two Kurdish political prisoners, Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour, both from Naqadeh, who had previously been sentenced to death in a joint case on charges of membership in the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI). According to information obtained by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the death sentences of Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour were carried out in secret at dawn on Wednesday, May 21, 2026, in Naqadeh Central Prison, without prior notice to their families or the opportunity for a final visit.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian authorities executed two men Saturday morning on charges of armed rebellion and membership in a banned opposition group, marking a continuation of a sharp increase in capital punishment following recent regional hostilities. The Iranian judiciary’s Mizan Online news portal identified the men as Abolhassan Montazer, 68, and Vahid Baniamerian, 34. Both were convicted of "armed rebellion" ( baghy ) and involvement in terrorist activities on behalf of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). The judiciary alleged the men planned and executed explosions in Tehran using rocket launchers. The executions were carried out after the Supreme Court confirmed their death sentences, which originated from a Revolutionary Court trial in late 2024.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Sharifeh Mohammadi, an Iranian labor activist previously sentenced to death over alleged ties to Kurdish opposition parties, has had her sentence commuted to 30 years in prison, her lawyer said on Wednesday.   Mohammadi was handed a death sentence in July 2024 for allegedly participating in armed rebellion, known as “Baghi.” She was accused of membership in a group linked to the Komala Party, an exiled Kurdish group designated a terrorist organization by Tehran. 

Cameroon's main opposition leader, Maurice Kamto, has gone on trial in a military court in Yaoundé, along with 90 of his supporters. Kamto, who was the runner-up in last year’s presidential election, is accused of insurrection and rebellion, and could face the death penalty. Kamto arrived in court on Friday under tight security. The trial venue was protected by 200 police officers in anti-riot gear, while others patrolled the area in pick-up trucks. There had been calls from the opposition leader's followers for a protest rally outside the court. Kamto, together with several dozen of his political allies and supporters, faces charges of insurrection, hostility to the motherland and rebellion, crimes which, in theory at least, could carry the death penalty. The head of the opposition Movement for the Rebirth of Cameroon (MRC) was arrested in January after months of peaceful opposition protests denouncing the results of the October 2018 presidential election. ...