Cartoon by Mana Neyestani

Iran’s Escalating Execution Crisis:  A Tool to Suppress Dissent

Iran Human Rights Monitor: Over the past three years Iran has experienced an unprecedented surge in executions. What began in 2022 intensified year after year, placing Iran at the top of global execution statistics. Reports from credible human rights organizations and UN bodies indicate that these executions function less as judicial penalties and more as a deliberate instrument of repression and social control.

Rising execution figures

2022: At least 578 executions were carried out, according to Iran Human Rights Monitor (Iran HRM).

2023: The figure rose to 850 executions. Amnesty International described this increase as alarming and highlighted Iran’s disproportionate share of global executions that year.

2024: HRM and Ensemble Contre la Peine de Mort (ECPM) recorded 993 executions, the highest number in 17 years.

2025 (through end of August): The UN Human Rights Office reported at least 972 executions, indicating the trend remains sustained and may surpass 2024’s total.
 

Political and security-related executions

A significant portion of recent executions has targeted political prisoners and protest participants. During the uprising in 2022, at least seven demonstrators — including Mohsen Shekari and Majidreza Rahnavard — were executed after expedited trials lacking due process. The pattern continued in following years: in September 2025 Mehran Bahramian, detained during the unrest, was executed on charges of moharebeh (“enmity against God”).

Notable figures such as Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani, who were associated with the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign, were executed in 2024 and became symbols of repression. At least 14 political prisoners currently remain under death sentences. These practices are clear violations of Iran’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention Against Torture (CAT).

Drug-related executions

A prominent feature of recent years is the return to large numbers of executions for drug-related offenses. In 2024, HRM reported at least 503 executions for drug charges — over half of that year’s total executions.

This surge follows a 2017 reform that was expected to reduce capital punishment for drug crimes. Most of those executed were from marginalized communities, frequently denied access to independent counsel or fair trials. Many executions were carried out in groups and without prior family notification, suggesting that drug-related prosecutions are being used to sustain high execution rates and to project a climate of fear.