The Iranian government is executing 10 people every week on dubious charges such as drug trafficking, blasphemy and “national security concerns,” according to human rights groups.
The toll stands at 209 people executed as of early May in 2023, while the number for the whole of 2022 was put at over 500, putting Iran on course to execute more people this year than it did last.
Iran is one of the few countries in the world that still practices capital punishment, including for crimes such as drug trafficking, blasphemy, and “spreading corruption on earth” or “enmity against God.” These infamous charges are often used against political figures.
UN Human Rights Chief in Geneva, Volker Türk, called on the Iranian authorities to halt executions in a statement on Tuesday. “This is an abominable record, particularly when you consider the growing consensus for the universal abolition of the death penalty,” he said.
The Iranian judiciary has been run by the religious authority in the country since 1979, and it is under the direct control of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The clergymen have used the courts to crack down on any opposition to the regime in Iran and often passed hefty sentences in speedy courts using forced confessions.
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