Hengaw Reports 347 Prisoners Executed in Iran Since Beginning of 2024

The human rights organization "Hengaw" reported that from the beginning of 2024 until Thursday (August 8 - Mordad 18), 347 prisoners have been executed in Iran. Hengaw also noted that during this period, 795 citizens have been arrested. In recent months, the arrest of political and social activists, members of families seeking justice, and opponents of compulsory hijab in Iran has intensified. The report also stated that there have been 118 cases of femicide recorded in Iran during this timeframe. Previously, the newspaper "Etemad" reported that in the first three months of the years 1401 to 1403, at least 85 cases of femicide were recorded in Iran, with most of the accused being husbands. Last Esfand, the organization "Stop Femicide Iran" based in New York reported that in 2023, 156 cases of femicide were recorded in Iran, averaging 13 murders per month. According to several media outlets in Iran, some academic articles and theses have reported annual statistics of between 375 to 450 cases of femicide in Iran, referred to in official government literature as "honor killings." Under the laws of the Islamic Republic, the father of the victim, if he is the murderer, is effectively immune due to blood rights and what is referred to in Islamic Republic laws as "vali dam." In cases of spousal murder or femicide, Islamic penal laws have left loopholes that allow the murderer to be protected under justifications such as "honor" or suspicion of "illicit relations." Hengaw also reported that since the beginning of this year, 45 kolbars (border porters) and traders have been killed, and 261 kolbars have been injured. Previously, the human rights organization "Kurdpa" reported on July 20 that during the first six months of 2024, 33 kolbars were killed and 254 others were injured. The high unemployment and poverty rates are among the factors driving people to engage in border porterage, either legally or illegally, which is physically exhausting and a dangerous job. Executions continue to claim victims in Iranian prisons; a rare figure in recent years. The Australian Council of Trade Unions stated that the death sentence for Sharifeh Mohammadi is a continuation of the repression of labor activists in Iran. The Supreme Court confirmed the execution of six prisoners on charges of "baghi" (rebellion). Four political prisoners in Qezel Hessar described the execution of Reza Rasayi as "the poison of the executioners" on the eve of the anniversary of the "Shahrivar Uprising." The increase in executions in Iran over the past two months has led human rights organizations to call for decisive action from the international community.