Tag: Aref Khoshkar

Death Toll from Executions at Ghezel Hesar Prison Rises to Five

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Executions, News
Abbas Nesari, Aref Khoshkar, Ghezel Hesar prison, HRANA, Karaj

HRANA – Yesterday, alongside the execution of political prisoner Aref Khoshkar, who had been sentenced to death on charges including murder, four other prisoners who had also been sentenced to death in separate murder cases were executed at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj.

According to HRANA, five prisoners were executed at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj in the early hours of Wednesday, July 15.

In addition to the execution of Aref Khoshkar, which HRANA reported earlier, four other prisoners were hanged at the prison. HRANA has identified one of them as Abbas Nesari, who had previously been sentenced to death on murder charges.

The remaining details regarding the four prisoners’ cases were published by the Hamshahri newspaper and are summarized below:

The first prisoner had been arrested in May 2022 on charges of fatally shooting a teenage boy with a Kalashnikov rifle. He was subsequently sentenced to death by a criminal court. After the sentence was upheld by Branch 20 of the Supreme Court, it was carried out on Tuesday.

The second prisoner had been arrested in 2021 on charges of murdering his stepson. He was sentenced to death by a criminal court, and the ruling was later upheld by Branch 7 of the Supreme Court before being carried out.

The third prisoner had been arrested in March 2024 on charges of murdering both his former wife’s daughter and his former wife. He was later sentenced to death by a criminal court.

The fourth case stemmed from the reported disappearance of a middle-aged man in December 2020. The investigation ultimately led to a confession by the victim’s wife.

According to the case file, the woman, with the assistance of a man identified as Behzad, gave her husband sleeping pills to facilitate the murder. Behzad then entered the house, fatally shot the victim, and together they transported the body to the Saveh road, where they set it on fire.

After reviewing the evidence, the criminal court found Behzad to be the principal perpetrator of the murder and sentenced him to death. His execution was carried out on Tuesday morning. The victim’s wife was sentenced to prison for complicity in the murder.

According to HRA’s Annual Report, in 2025 at least 2,063 citizens, including 61 women and 2 juvenile offenders, were executed. Of these, the sentences of 11 individuals were carried out in public. During the same period, 172 other individuals were sentenced to death.

2022 Protests: Aref Khoshkar Executed at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj

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Executions, News
Aref Khoshkar, Ghezel Hesar prison, HRANA, Karaj, moharebeh

HRANA – The death sentence of Aref Khoshkar, one of those arrested during the 2022 nationwide protests, was carried out at dawn today, July 15, 2026, at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj.

According to HRANA, the execution of Aref Khoshkar, a detainee from the 2022 nationwide protests, was carried out at dawn on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj.

A source close to the family of the political prisoner told HRANA that Khoshkar’s family was informed of his execution at approximately 8:00 a.m. today. Prison authorities refused to hand over his body to the family and transferred it to the Behesht Zahra morgue in Tehran at around 11:00 a.m. The family was also instructed to go to Behesht Zahra at approximately 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, July 16, 2026, to identify and receive his body.

The source added that Aref Khoshkar had been transferred to Suite 35 of Ghezel Hesar Prison on Saturday, July 11, 2026, and his family had their final visit with him on Sunday, July 12, 2026. His family had sought a one-month postponement of the execution and requested a meeting aimed at obtaining the consent of the victim’s family in an effort to halt the sentence. However, these efforts were unsuccessful. Despite assurances that such a meeting would be held, the relevant authorities ultimately took no action to arrange it.

Aref Khoshkar had been sentenced to death by the Revolutionary Court on the charge of moharebeh (enmity against God) through carrying and using a weapon, as well as the killing of a Basij member. His lawyer had previously pointed to significant ambiguities in the case, stating that the location of the killing cited by the court was not covered by surveillance cameras and that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the charges.

Aref Khoshkar was arrested on November 11, 2022, during the nationwide protests in Tehran’s Fallah neighborhood. His indictment, which included charges of moharebeh through carrying and using a weapon, assembly and collusion against national security, and the killing of a Basij member, was referred to the Revolutionary Court.