Executions in Iran Are up 30 Percent, UN Report Says

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has said that the Islamic Republic of Iran is carrying out executions “at an alarming rate.” and expressed deep concern at the “lack of transparent and independent investigations” into reports of massive human rights violations.

The Iranian authorities executed at least 419 people in the first seven months of the year, up 30 percent from the same period in 2022, Guterres said in a new report to the UN General Assembly on the human rights situation in Iran.

More than half of those executed — 239 people – were reportedly put to death on drug-related charges, a 98-percent increase from the same period last year, he said.

Seven men were executed in relation to or for participating in the monthslong nationwide protests sparked by the September 2022 death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, according to the report.

In all seven cases, the judicial proceedings “did not fulfill the requirements for due process and a fair trial under international human rights law,” it said, adding that “access to adequate and timely legal representation was frequently denied, with reports of coerced confessions, which may have been obtained as a result of torture.” 

Guterres cited information received by the UN rights agency that between September 2022 and February 2023, an estimated 20,000 people were arrested for their involvement in the protest movement.

“It is particularly concerning that most of the individuals arrested may have been children, given that the reported average age of those arrested was estimated to be 15 years, according to the deputy commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” the secretary-general said.

He cited reported instances of disproportionate and excessive use of force against demonstrators, and beatings and sexual violence after they were put into custody, as well as psychological abuse.

The government said “a minimum of” 22,000 people detained during the protests were pardoned, but Guterres pointed out that it was difficult to verify the numbers of those arrested and released.

He also said that a number of those who were pardoned then received summonses on new charges or were rearrested, including activists, journalists and members of minority groups. 

According to the report, “the continued denial of adequate medical care in detention remains a serious concern.”

The secretary-general urged Iran to immediately halt all executions, abolish the death penalty and release all people detained arbitrarily “for legitimately exercising their rights to freedom of opinion and expression, association and peaceful assembly.”

Guterres said the government should guarantee the right to peaceful assembly, ensure that security at protests complies with international human rights norms and standards, and respect the rights to due process and fair trials.