In the early hours of Wednesday, August 7, the execution of 22 prisoners, including seven Sunni prisoners and three Afghan nationals, was carried out in Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj. Human rights activists are expressing concern over the increase in executions in Iran.
Just one day after the execution of political prisoner Reza Rasaei, and amidst ongoing criticism and reactions to his execution, reports indicate that Iranian regime officials executed 22 prisoners in Ghezel Hesar Prison near Tehran on Wednesday, August 7.
The report adds that seven prisoners were executed for drug-related offenses, four for murder, three Afghan nationals, and one other prisoner with unspecified charges.
One of them was executed without a final meeting with his family. He, along with six other prisoners, including two female prisoners, had been transferred to solitary confinement for execution. At dawn today, their executions were carried out without a family visit, only a phone call for goodbyes, and the bodies of most of them have been handed over to their families.
So far, Iranian officials and media have not reported these executions, as the authorities do not officially announce every case of capital punishment carried out.
Human rights activists believe that Iranian regime officials have significantly increased the use of the death penalty, as published statistics indicate a rise in executions in the country.
On Tuesday noon, August 6, coinciding with the hunger strike of prisoners on the 28th “No to Executions Tuesday” campaign, political female prisoners in the women’s ward of Evin Prison protested the execution of Reza Rasaei in Kermanshah by chanting “Death to the dictator” and “Death to the executioner regime.” The prison guards attacked and beat the protesting prisoners, injuring several of them who were then transferred to the prison infirmary.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), expressed sympathy with the grieving families and said that the foundation of this regime is built on torture, execution, massacre, and genocide, continuously shedding blood for 45 years. She stated that the machinery of repression and killing does not stop for a moment to block the anger of the people and popular uprisings, but these bloodsheds make the people and rebellious youth more determined to overthrow the regime.
