Executions in Iran since 2023
Category: Justice & Executions · Last updated: July 2026
Summary
The number of executions in Iran has been rising sharply since 2022. According to the annual reports of Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) and the organisation ECPM, at least 834 people were executed in 2023, at least 975 in 2024 and at least 1,639 in 2025, the highest documented figure since 1989.[1][2][3] Almost half of the executions in 2025 were for drug offences. Iran Human Rights and the UN Fact-Finding Mission classify the increase as an instrument of intimidation following the nationwide protests of 2022.[3]
Background
Iranian criminal law provides for the death penalty for, among others, murder (under the retribution principle Qisas), drug offences, and broadly interpretable offences such as "waging war against God" (Moharebeh) and "corruption on earth" (Efsad-fil-arz). Death sentences for drug offences are imposed by Revolutionary Courts; human rights organisations document systematic violations of fair trial rights, including lack of access to defence counsel.[3] The rise in executions began after the crackdown on the 2022 protests (see article JINA Movement 2022). On 8 December 2022, Mohsen Shekari became the first protester to be executed.[4]
Development of the documented figures
| Year | Executions (minimum) | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 834 | +43% over 2022 | IHRNGO/ECPM, UN Special Rapporteur[1][5] |
| 2024 | 975 | +17% | IHRNGO/ECPM[2] |
| 2025 | 1,639 | +68%, highest since 1989 | IHRNGO/ECPM[3] |
All figures are minimum figures. A large share of executions is not officially announced by the Iranian authorities and is based on the organisations' research with relatives and from prisons.
Affected groups and patterns
- Drug offences: in 2024 at least 503 executions (about 52 percent) concerned drug offences, in 2025 at least 795.[2][3]
- Ethnic minorities: Baluch and Kurds are significantly over-represented among those executed; IHRNGO cites poverty as a key underlying factor.[3]
- Women: at least 23 women were executed in 2023, at least 48 in 2025, the highest number in at least two decades.[3][5]
- Foreign nationals: in 2025 at least 84 Afghan and three Iraqi nationals were executed.[3]
- Minors: the UN Special Rapporteur documented at least one execution of a person who was a minor at the time of the offence in 2023.[5]
- Public executions: in 2025 at least eleven executions were carried out in public, some in the presence of children.[3]
- Protest-related executions: in 2023, eight people were executed in connection with protests, six of them in the context of the "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement. Following the wave of protests in December 2025/January 2026, hundreds of detained protesters are at risk of death sentences according to IHRNGO.[1][3]
Reactions
International
The UN Human Rights Council repeatedly addressed the rising execution figures.[5][6] In October 2025 the UN Fact-Finding Mission stated that executions forming part of a widespread and systematic attack on the civilian population may constitute crimes against humanity, and that the judges involved could also be held accountable.[3] In early 2026 Human Rights Watch described the execution practice as part of a deepening human rights crisis.[7]
Domestic
Inside Iranian prisons the protest movement "No Death Penalty Tuesdays" (weekly hunger strikes against the death penalty) emerged, joined by prisoners in 56 prisons by 2025. In October 2025, death-row prisoners in Ghezelhesar prison achieved a temporary halt to drug-related executions at that prison through a six-day strike.[3]
Evidence & sources
- Iran Human Rights / ECPM: Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran 2023, March 2024.
- Iran Human Rights / ECPM: Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran 2024, February 2025.
- Iran Human Rights / ECPM: 2025 Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran, April 2026.
- NPR: Iran carries out first known execution of a prisoner arrested in recent protests, 8 December 2022.
- UN News: Iran: Repression continues two years after nationwide protests, 18 March 2024 (report of UN Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman).
- UN News: Human Rights Council hears alarming updates on executions in Iran, June 2025.
- Human Rights Watch: Iran: Human Rights Situation Spirals Deeper into Crisis, 4 February 2026.
Linked testimonials
No linked testimonials yet. Anonymous reports can be submitted via the Testimonials page.