Islamic Republic Executed 11 Afghans in One Month, Claims Iran Human Rights Organisation

The Iran Human Rights Organisation has reported that at least 100 people were executed in Iran during August this year.

The organisation, based in Norway, released a report on Tuesday, September 3, stating that among the executed were 11 Afghan citizens, eight Baluch citizens, and nine Kurdish citizens.

According to the statistics, the number of executions carried out by the Islamic Republic in the first eight months of this year has reached at least 402.

The report indicated that 50 of those executed were convicted of "premeditated murder," while 46 were executed on drug-related charges. Three individuals were accused of rape, and one political prisoner was sentenced to death for allegedly killing a security officer.

The Iran Human Rights Organisation emphasised that executions in the country have intensified following the recent presidential election in Iran.

The organisation reiterated its call for a global response to the wave of executions in Iran. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the organisation's director, stated, "The execution of at least 100 people in just one month should prompt a strong international reaction."

He further highlighted that the victims of the Islamic Republic's execution machine are often the most vulnerable members of society, stating, "These individuals are killed without fair trials, aimed at instilling fear in the community. People, human rights organisations, and the international community must use protests, condemnation, and political pressure to raise the cost for the regime."

According to the report, one of those executed was Reza Rasaei, a Kurdish protester who was arrested during the 2022 protests. He was sentenced to death without access to a fair trial, based on confessions extracted under torture and solely on the judge's discretion.

The report also confirmed that one of the individuals was hanged in public, which had not occurred in the past eight months.

The Iran Human Rights Organisation noted that only six of the 100 executions carried out in the past month (six percent) were reported by official Iranian media.

This report comes a day after UN experts expressed concern over the increasing number of executions in Iran. The UN experts, in their statement, called on the Islamic Republic to immediately halt the execution of individuals facing such punishment.

The statement revealed that at least 81 people were executed in Iran in August 2024, a significant rise from the 45 executions reported in July.

The UN experts stressed that "reports of serious violations of the right to a fair trial mean that the death penalty, as currently applied in the Islamic Republic of Iran, is unlawful."

They also noted that security-related charges with vague definitions, such as armed rebellion, spreading corruption on earth, and waging war against God or apostasy, do not meet the criteria for the "most serious crimes" under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and have, in several cases, led to the execution of regime opponents, which clearly violates international standards.