Execution of at least 8 more prisoners; women prisoners in Evin emphasize the continuation of the fight against the death penalty

Human rights sources report the continuation of executions in Iranian prisons, and political prisoners held in the women's ward of Evin have stated that they will continue to fight against the death penalty despite pressures. Human rights media reported that at least eight prisoners were executed in the early hours of Monday, August 29. The Halosh website reported the execution of five individuals in Yazd prison, identifying them as three Baluch citizens and two Afghan nationals who were convicted on drug-related or murder charges. The Iran Human Rights Organization also reported the execution of three individuals in Adelabad prison in Shiraz on Monday morning. Meanwhile, Maryam Yahyavi, a political prisoner in Evin prison, confirmed reports of a recent raid by agents against women who had gathered to protest the death sentences. In a letter published on Sunday, August 28, she wrote: 'They gathered their strength in their arms and imposed it on our heads and lives.' On Tuesday, August 16, security agents in Evin prison raided women participating in the 'No to Execution Tuesdays' campaign, protesting the execution of Reza Rasayi, and reportedly assaulted them. Maryam Yahyavi noted the pressures following this raid, including bans on visits and phone calls for the protesting prisoners, emphasizing that despite these pressures, their opposition to the death penalty will continue. This political prisoner wrote: 'They do not know that on a night when the moon was past its half, hand in hand, under the shadows of the Evin hills that have witnessed the execution of the best of this land for years, we have pledged to resist and stand firm until the abolition of the death penalty.' Golrokh Iraei, another political prisoner held in Evin, also emphasized in a letter published on Tuesday that all citizens 'from any position, as political activists, critics, or even citizens who consider themselves apolitical' must condemn the death penalty and openly oppose it. The trend of executions has increased in recent months, and according to estimates by the Iran Human Rights Organization based in Norway, at least 87 people were executed in Iranian prisons within one month after Masoud Pezeshkian was elected as president. Recently, Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, also expressed concern about the trend of executions in Iran.