Four Death Row Convicts Saved from Execution

In recent days, two convicts sentenced to qisas (retribution) have been pardoned at the gallows, and the execution of two others has been halted to seek the satisfaction of the victims' families or to arrange for blood money. According to the state news agency IRIB, quoting Mohammad Shahriari, head of the Criminal Court, the first death row convict was involved in a confrontation in 2012 in Shahr-e-Rey, where he killed a young man with a knife. This convict, identified as Majid, 27, went to the gallows three months ago in Rajai Shahr prison but managed to obtain a reprieve from the victim's family, who were his neighbors. After this grace period ended, Majid was brought to the gallows again on Wednesday morning, but this time the victim's family granted him a reprieve 'for the sake of their son's soul.' They later appeared in court and pardoned him. The second death row convict, who killed his brother-in-law eight years ago over a family dispute, also received a reprieve two months ago before facing execution again on Wednesday, but officials learned that the victim's family had pardoned him the day before. The third convict, who had been in prison for 15 years for murder, had not yet had his victims' families identified. He requested a month to pay for two full blood money compensations, leading to the suspension of his execution, which was referred to the head of the judiciary for resolution. The fourth convict, a 29-year-old man who killed a young man he suspected of having an affair with his wife nine years ago, was also on the verge of execution on Wednesday when the victim's parents granted him a month to seek their forgiveness due to the 'month of Safar.' These individuals have been spared execution at a time when Asma Jahangir, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, reported on Wednesday that 435 executions took place in the previous year. Although Iran ranks second in the number of executions after China, it has the highest per capita execution rate when considering its population. Iran is also one of the few countries that continue to execute individuals who committed crimes while underage. The ongoing implementation of the death penalty in Iran, especially for those who committed crimes as minors, has drawn significant criticism from human rights organizations and international bodies. According to global statistics, over 100 countries have abolished the death penalty, and dozens of countries have not carried out such punishments for years.