Iran
Protesters hold up a placard reading "Stop Execution in Iran" as they take part in a rally in support of anti-government demonstrations in Iran, in Berlin, Germany on Oct. 22, 2022. Photo: AFP
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran on Wednesday carried out the death sentence of a Kurdish prisoner over suspected drug-related charges, a human rights watchdog reported.
Hengaw Organization for Human Rights reported on Wednesday that Iran executed Faramarz Moradi, a Kurdish prisoner from the city of Salmas. Moradi was arrested four years ago on drug-related charges and sentenced to death by an Iranian court.
Iranian media linked with the country’s judiciary have not yet reported Moradi’s execution, according to Hengaw.
Tehran has heavily cracked down on drug trade in recent years, carrying out an alarming number of executions. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in April 2023 described his country as being “at the forefront of the fight against drugs.”
Amnesty International reported last month that at least 853 people were executed across Iran in 2023, marking a 48 percent increase from the previous year, and the highest execution rate since 2015.
Amnesty attributed the surge in executions mainly to Tehran’s strict anti-narcotic policies. The watchdog recorded 481 drug-related executions, making up 56 percent of the total number of executions in 2023.
The Islamic regime also used the death penalty to silence dissent in 2023, according to Amnesty, saying that at least six men were executed in relation to the 2022 Jin Jiyan Azadi (Woman Life Freedom) protests, and one in relation to the 2019 protests.
In February, the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Urmia, West Azerbaijan province sentenced a Kurdish cleric from the city of Bukan in western Iran to death for supporting the antigovernment protests.
Hengaw Organization for Human Rights reported on Wednesday that Iran executed Faramarz Moradi, a Kurdish prisoner from the city of Salmas. Moradi was arrested four years ago on drug-related charges and sentenced to death by an Iranian court.
Iranian media linked with the country’s judiciary have not yet reported Moradi’s execution, according to Hengaw.
Tehran has heavily cracked down on drug trade in recent years, carrying out an alarming number of executions. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in April 2023 described his country as being “at the forefront of the fight against drugs.”
Amnesty International reported last month that at least 853 people were executed across Iran in 2023, marking a 48 percent increase from the previous year, and the highest execution rate since 2015.
Amnesty attributed the surge in executions mainly to Tehran’s strict anti-narcotic policies. The watchdog recorded 481 drug-related executions, making up 56 percent of the total number of executions in 2023.
The Islamic regime also used the death penalty to silence dissent in 2023, according to Amnesty, saying that at least six men were executed in relation to the 2022 Jin Jiyan Azadi (Woman Life Freedom) protests, and one in relation to the 2019 protests.
In February, the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Urmia, West Azerbaijan province sentenced a Kurdish cleric from the city of Bukan in western Iran to death for supporting the antigovernment protests.
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