Iran
Death penalty and prisoners' rights · Archive since 1999
Data card
- Legal status
- Retentionist
- Executions recorded in 2026
- 869
- Executions recorded in 2025
- 2,156
- First news item in the archive
- JANUARY 1, 1999 · The 1999 figures for capital sentences and executions...
- News items in the archive
- 9,141
Source: Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026.
Iran is classified as Retentionist in the Hands Off Cain database, updated to 2026. In 2026 the association recorded 869 executions in the country, against 2,156 the year before. The archive holds 9,141 news items on Iran, from 1999 to today.
Iran is one of the countries where the association records the highest number of executions each year. The usual method is hanging, and capital punishment applies to a wide list of offences: murder, drug offences, offences against state security, sexual offences, and charges such as moharebeh, enmity against God, which allow very broad application.
Many executions are never announced. They emerge from local sources, from human rights organisations and from families. For Iran, more than anywhere else, the archive's count is a documented minimum.
Latest news
- APRIL 15, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
The Democratic Party of Kurdistan (DPK) in Iran said...
The Democratic Party of Kurdistan (DPK) in Iran said six of its members were executed in Iran's prisons
- APRIL 15, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
a young man was sentenced to flogging
a young man was sentenced to flogging
- APRIL 14, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Iranian dissident intellectual Hashem Aghajari had...
Iranian dissident intellectual Hashem Aghajari had his four-year jail sentence for insulting religious values dropped, but must await a review of his death sentence for blasphemy before he can hope to be released from prison, Zekrollah Ahmadi, judiciary c
- APRIL 12, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Offences punishable by death include:
Offences punishable by death include:
- APRIL 5, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
According to the information and public relations department...
According to the information and public relations department of the Justice Department of Iran's Khuzestan province, a man named Hadi H
- MARCH 25, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
The European Union warned Tehran on that it had seen...
The European Union warned Tehran on that it had seen little progress in Iran's human rights dossier, which Brussels had effectively made a precondition to improved trade ties
- MARCH 25, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
The European Union warned Tehran on that it had seen...
The European Union warned Tehran on that it had seen little progress in Iran's human rights dossier, which Brussels had effectively made a precondition to improved trade ties
- MARCH 22, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Farhad and Mansur Muhammadi, two Iranian brothers who...
Farhad and Mansur Muhammadi, two Iranian brothers who hijacked a Russian plane to Oslo in 1993, were allowed to remain in Norway temporarily, but would not receive permanent resident permits, the Norwegian government said
- MARCH 15, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
according to the intelligence and public relations department of Khuzistan province...
according to the intelligence and public relations department of Khuzistan province...
- MARCH 14, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
after investigation by the 22nd branch of Ahwaz's public court, Habib Z. was sentenced to death
after investigation by the 22nd branch of Ahwaz's public court, Habib Z. was sentenced to death
- MARCH 13, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
some 40,000 satellite dishes were recently confiscated by Islamist militia
some 40,000 satellite dishes were recently confiscated by Islamist militia
- MARCH 10, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
according to the intelligence and public relations department of Khuzistan province's judiciary...
according to the intelligence and public relations department of Khuzistan province's judiciary...
- MARCH 8, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Saadollah Rahimi and Dalir Mohammadi, two Iranians...
Saadollah Rahimi and Dalir Mohammadi, two Iranians convicted of kidnapping and murdering an eight-year-old boy eight days previously, were executed by hanging in the western Kurdish town of Baneh
- MARCH 4, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Hojatol Islam Taqwa sentenced a man to execution
Hojatol Islam Taqwa sentenced a man to execution
- MARCH 3, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
An Iranian man identified as Kamal Jabarpour, was hanged...
An Iranian man identified as Kamal Jabarpour, was hanged publicly in a square in the north-western Iranian town of Morand after being found guilty of murder and armed robbery, the Qods newspaper reported
- MARCH 3, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Some 318 members of the 630-seat Italian lower house...
Some 318 members of the 630-seat Italian lower house of parliament, a majority including leftists and conservatives, supported a petition by the Mujahedeen Khalq, an Iranian opposition group, that thousands of their fighters not be extradited from Iraq to
- MARCH 3, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Ardeshir Afshinzadeh, a 25 year old film editor who had been transferred
Ardeshir Afshinzadeh, a 25 year old film editor who had been transferred
- MARCH 3, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
the head of the first branch of Baneh's public court, Judge Hosseinpour issued...
the head of the first branch of Baneh's public court, Judge Hosseinpour issued...
- FEBRUARY 28, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
the body of Ismail Yousefi, an Iranian asylum seeker...
the body of Ismail Yousefi, an Iranian asylum seeker who had been deported to Iran from Norway
- FEBRUARY 27, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Kobra Rahmanpour, 22, will be executed on February 28, 2004.
Kobra Rahmanpour, 22, will be executed on February 28, 2004.
- FEBRUARY 26, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
A 65-year-old Iranian was hanged at Tehran's Qasr prison...
A 65-year-old Iranian was hanged at Tehran's Qasr prison for raping an 11-month-old infant, the daily Etemad said
- FEBRUARY 26, 2004CanadaDEATH PENALTY
Iran has refused to send to Canada the body of a man
Iran has refused to send to Canada the body of a man
- FEBRUARY 25, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
The Tokyo District Court rejected a request for refugee...
The Tokyo District Court rejected a request for refugee status from a gay Iranian man who claimed that his homosexuality would be grounds for the death penalty if he was sent back to his homeland
- FEBRUARY 24, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Two armed robbers identified only as Mahmoud and Mehdi...
Two armed robbers identified only as Mahmoud and Mehdi were publicly hanged in the northern Caspian Sea port town of Gaz after being found guilty of multiple counts of armed robbery of jewellery stores
- FEBRUARY 24, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
Mohammad Ali Firouzi, branded the "King of Terror"...
Mohammad Ali Firouzi, branded the "King of Terror" for his violent run of crime, was hanged at dawn in a prison in the south-western town of Marvdasht
- FEBRUARY 16, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
"On the 15th anniversary of Imam Khomeyni's historic...
"On the 15th anniversary of Imam Khomeyni's historic decree on Salman Rushdie (the author of the heretic book "The Satanic Verses"), the divine fatwa still holds and continues to be valid, and nothing has been able to undermine or mar its effect and influ
- FEBRUARY 14, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
the Jomhouri Islami daily reported that in the past two weeks...
the Jomhouri Islami daily reported that in the past two weeks...
- FEBRUARY 13, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
two students of the University of Noshahr were sentenced to 100 lashes
two students of the University of Noshahr were sentenced to 100 lashes
- FEBRUARY 8, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
a man in Dezful was sentenced to having four fingers of his right hand amputated
a man in Dezful was sentenced to having four fingers of his right hand amputated
- FEBRUARY 7, 2004IranDEATH PENALTY
the judiciary issued a death for a person.
the judiciary issued a death for a person.