Report from a Human Rights Organization on Nearly Five Thousand Executions in Iran Over the Past Decade

The news agency of the Human Rights Activists in Iran reported that the judiciary of the Islamic Republic has executed the death sentences of 4,829 Iranians over the past decade, among whom more than 40 were children and underage. According to statistics from the 'Database of Human Rights Violators in Iran,' from 2013 to 2023, a total of 4,829 people were executed, with a concerning increase in this trend this year, averaging 10 citizens executed each week since mid-May. Most of those executed were men, and half of them were charged with drug-related offenses. Of the 41 executed 'child offenders,' one was linked to drug issues. Skyler Thompson, Global Advocacy and Response Director at the Human Rights Activists in Iran, stated: 'The continuation of executions in the Islamic Republic, especially when trials violate due process, is deeply concerning, and Iranian authorities must immediately halt all executions and abolish the death penalty unconditionally.' In this context, Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, stated to Voice of America on July 2, 2022, that 'in the first six months of 2022, the Islamic Republic executed at least 251 people, which is a twofold increase compared to the same period the previous year.' He added: 'Although Baluch citizens make up 2 to 5 percent of Iran's population, they account for 27 percent of those executed.' On June 27 of this year, over eighty families of victims residing in Iran, including the families of Bakhtiari, Mojadam, Ketabdar, Shekari, and Karami, issued a statement demanding a halt to death sentences. In their statement, these families referred to the recent wave of executions as 'revenge against the protesting people who took to the streets shouting for justice for women, life, and freedom,' emphasizing: 'We, the families of victims who bear the deep wounds of losing our loved ones, whether in the streets or at the gallows, cry out to stop the executions and killings of human beings, to immediately annul all death sentences; executions for any reason and any crime must cease, and we will no longer allow our loved ones to be killed.' The Islamic Republic continues to pursue executions; there are concerns about sentences issued for imprisoned protesters, an increase in executions and arrests of Baluch people; security pressures on Molavi Abdolhamid have intensified; pressures on the plaintiffs include arrests, trials, imprisonment, and flogging for the relatives of those who died in protests. Two people were executed in public in connection with the 'Shah Cheragh attack' case. Iran Human Rights Organization reported 354 executions in six months; the international community must break its silence.