Iran continues to execute in secret

Iran Human Rights –  has reported on recent executions that were carried out in Iran without any announcement or follow-up report by Iranian authorities. The reports include information on secret mass executions in Vakilabad and Ghezel Hesar prisons.

Four people were executed in Qom prison in the past two weeks

Qom said in a press conference today that four people convicted of smuggling drugs have been executed in Qom prison during the last two weeks.

The main theme of the press conference was about the arrest of more than 200 people, including 32 drug dealers, 79 “dangerous drug addicts”, and 137 drug users. Mir-Heydari described the four executions as “marginal”.

None of those executed were identified by name and the Iranian media did not announce the news of the executions earlier.

Since Iranian authorities fail to announce all the executions, human rights groups believe that the real number of executions are much higher than those announced by the Iranian media.

A group execution in Iran

Earlier, Iran Human Rights reported that 25 people in Ghezel Hesar prison (in Karaj, west of Tehran) had been hanged on July 3rd.…all those executed were men convicted of drug-related offences. The executions took place in the prison’s yard.

These executions have not been reported by the official Iranian media.

According to the group “Iranian Activists for Human Rights and Democracy”, 7 people were hanged in Tehran’s Evin prison also on July 3rd. Six of the prisoners were transferred from Ghezel Hesar prison and one was transferred from Rajai Shahr prison. One of the men, who was not identified by name, was an Afghan citizen. The other six men executed were identified as, Hamid Nader, Seyed Abolfazl Azimitabar, Mehdi Bashir, Javad Abdollahvand (54 years old), Asghar, and Masoud Ali Moradi (30 years old, transferred from Rajai Shahr prison).

Iranian authorities have not reported on these executions.

Several human rights groups had reported earlier about secret mass executions in prisons in the province of Khorasan. According to our reports, secret mass executions have also been occurring in other Iranian prisons like Ghezel Hesar.

It is believed that the number of executions in Ghezel Hesar prison might even exceed those in Mashhad’s Vakilabad prison.

According to the IHR annual report on the death penalty in 2010 , in Iran, at least 474 people were executed as a result of the secret mass executions in the Khorasan province. At least 205 of the executions were not included in the annual report due to ongoing investigations.

Most of the people executed were convicted of drug-trafficking.

The Prosecutor of the southern Khorasan province confirmed in a press conference last week that 140 prisoners convicted of drug-trafficking had been executed in that region from the period of March 2010 to March 2011. The majority of these executions had not been reported by the Iranian media.

IHR urges the newly appointed United Nations Special Rapporteur Mr. Ahmad Shaheed to pay special attention to the reports concerning the secret mass executions in Iranian prisons.

 

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