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
- 9,142
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 9,142 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
- JULY 2, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
An Tehran court sentenced three men - Keyvan Razaghi,...
An Tehran court sentenced three men - Keyvan Razaghi, Kamran Razaghi and Hamdollah Zaheri - to death
- JULY 1, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Two men were condemned to death in Mashdad, an Iranian...
Two men were condemned to death in Mashdad, an Iranian newspaper reported
- JUNE 30, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A man was hanged inside a prison in Karaj, near Tehran,...
A man was hanged inside a prison in Karaj, near Tehran, for murder
- JUNE 30, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Police Commander in Khorasan Province Brig-Gen Eskandar...
Police Commander in Khorasan Province Brig-Gen Eskandar Mo'meni said that the police have seized five tons of narcotics in the first quarter of the Iranian year which started 21 March
- JUNE 30, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Two executions were carried out in different Iranian cities
Two executions were carried out in different Iranian cities
- JUNE 29, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Four people, Saeid, Siamak, Babak and an unidentified...
Four people, Saeid, Siamak, Babak and an unidentified man were sentenced to death in Tehran
- JUNE 24, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Abbas Ali was hanged in jail in Mashdad, Iran
Abbas Ali was hanged in jail in Mashdad, Iran
- JUNE 24, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A Tehran court sentenced Hamid Allah Assadzadeh to execution
A Tehran court sentenced Hamid Allah Assadzadeh to execution
- JUNE 20, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
An Iranian court condemned an Afghan national identified...
An Iranian court condemned an Afghan national identified as Mahmoud to death
- JUNE 20, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A woman identified only as Ashraf was condemned to...
A woman identified only as Ashraf was condemned to death by stoning in Iran
- JUNE 19, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Four convicted murderers - Davood Nazari, Akbar Alinejad,...
Four convicted murderers - Davood Nazari, Akbar Alinejad, Saeid Massoumi and Mohammed Lashgari - were hanged inside a prison in the capital city Tehran
- JUNE 18, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A man was hanged in public in Bandar Gaz, Iran
A man was hanged in public in Bandar Gaz, Iran
- JUNE 18, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Zahra E
Zahra E
- JUNE 18, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Politicians and pilots in Norway denounced a ruling...
Politicians and pilots in Norway denounced a ruling that gave asylum to two grenade-wielding Iranian hijackers who forced a plane to divert to Oslo in 1993
- JUNE 17, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
An Iranian identified as Majid was sentenced to execution
An Iranian identified as Majid was sentenced to execution
- JUNE 16, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Siavosh was hanged in jail in Shahr Rey, Iran
Siavosh was hanged in jail in Shahr Rey, Iran
- JUNE 12, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A Tehran court condemned a man to death
A Tehran court condemned a man to death
- JUNE 11, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A convicted murderer -identified as Mostafa R
A convicted murderer -identified as Mostafa R
- JUNE 11, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel said that any...
Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel said that any trade agreement between the European Union and Iran would have to include provisions on human rights and the global fight against terrorism
- JUNE 11, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel said that any...
Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel said that any trade agreement between the European Union and Iran would have to include provisions on human rights and the global fight against terrorism
- JUNE 11, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A court in Tehran sentenced a man to death
A court in Tehran sentenced a man to death
- JUNE 10, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Hossein Najafi, a convicted murderer was hanged in...
Hossein Najafi, a convicted murderer was hanged in a prison in the northeatern holy city of Mashhad, the daily Qods said
- JUNE 10, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Rasoul Imani, 63, was hanged in jail in Tabriz, Iran
Rasoul Imani, 63, was hanged in jail in Tabriz, Iran
- JUNE 10, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Three men were sentenced to execution in Abadan, Iran
Three men were sentenced to execution in Abadan, Iran
- JUNE 9, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Mohammed A
Mohammed A
- JUNE 6, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A Tehran court sentenced five men to death
A Tehran court sentenced five men to death
- JUNE 3, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Hassan Mousavi, a convicted killer, was publicly hanged...
Hassan Mousavi, a convicted killer, was publicly hanged in the western town of Malayer
- JUNE 2, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Three men - Javad Akbarpour, Jaber Talebi and Hassan...
Three men - Javad Akbarpour, Jaber Talebi and Hassan Afgani - were hanged in prison in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz
- JUNE 2, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A court in Mashdad, Iran, handed out death sentences...
A court in Mashdad, Iran, handed out death sentences to Mehsi and Hossein
- JUNE 1, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
A court in Karaj, near the Iranian capital Tehran,...
A court in Karaj, near the Iranian capital Tehran, passed a death-by-stoning sentence on Shahnaz
