Iran executed 834 people last year, including 22 women, a record number.

They are a tragic sign of the desire for change. Iran executed at least 834 people last year, an “alarming” 43% increase from 2022 and the highest since 2015, according to an annual report by the non-governmental organization Human Rights Iran and Together Against the Death Penalty.

“This is the second time in 20 years that the number of executions has exceeded the 800 threshold per year,” the groups said, condemning the “horrific” explosive figure. In 2015, Iranian authorities executed 972 people without much explanation, including the Norway-based Iranian Human Rights Organization (IHRNGO) and the Paris-based United Against the Death Penalty (ECPM).

At least 22 women were executed in the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2023, the highest number in ten years. Unfortunately, this is a sign of the times, which demonstrates the will of Iranian women through the “Woman. Life. Freedom. ”, which has been in preparation for years to ease the pressure from the mullahs on their daily lives and their destinies. In evidence of the widening gulf between the largely young population and the religious establishment that has been in power for 45 years, the participation rate in Friday’s legislative elections was just 41%, the lowest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. In some districts, if candidates fail to obtain the required minimum 20% of votes cast, a runoff will take place in April. According to some Iranian media, the number of invalid ballots is expected to be 30%, a sign of frustration among regime supporters.

Death penalty for 30g of heroin in one of the highest consumption countries

A major political and social opposition movement, fueled by economic hardship, was sparked by the September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, three days after he was arrested by morality police for an ill-fitting veil. Her family and human rights activists say she was beaten to death, but Iranian officials deny this. Protests continued for several weeks, and at least eight protesters were among those executed in 2023. release. Repression undermined it, and the demonstrations died down. “Instilling fear in society is the only way to stay in power, and the death penalty is its most important tool,” denounces Mahmoud Amiri-Moghaddam, director of IHRNGO, in a press release.

The death penalty is also used to suppress non-political crimes. According to the report, at least 282 people were executed for murder and at least 471 people were executed in drug cases. Iran, which has one of the highest rates of opioid consumption in the world, is a major route for drugs from neighboring Afghanistan to Europe and the Middle East. Iranian law provides for the death penalty for trafficking in more than 5 kg of substances derived from opium, or more than 30 g of heroin, morphine, cocaine or their chemical derivatives.

“Particularly alarming is the impressive increase in the number of drug-related executions in 2023,” the NGOs say. “Those executed for drug offenses belong to the most marginalized groups in society, and ethnic minorities, especially Baloch, are largely overrepresented among those executed,” condemns the report, which suggests the war on drugs could be used as a weapon with drugs. a pretext to cover up political executions.