18-Year-Old Sepehr Shirani’s Suspicious Death in Custody

On January 30, 2024, Sepehr Shirani, 18 years old, died under suspicious circumstances after three days in the custody of a security institution in Zahedan, as reported by Haal Vsh.

IRGC Intelligence is said to be responsible for his arrest, notifying Shirani’s family of his demise via a phone call. As of now, his body has not been handed over to his family.

The agents cited the publication of critical social media posts as the reason for Shirani’s arrest.

The Baloch Activists Campaign, a human rights monitor in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, has reported that Shirani died under torture while in custody.

Notably, recent years have seen numerous cases of suspicious deaths or murders of citizens within police detention centers, security, and judicial institutions. In most instances, investigations have failed to definitively identify perpetrators or hold authorities accountable.

The agents had reportedly mentioned publishing criticizing posts on social media as the reason for Shirani’s arrest.

According to HRA’s annual report for 2023, a total of 1,386 violations of prisoners’ rights were documented. These include 27 cases of physical assault on prisoners, 1,390 instances of denial or neglect of medical care, 342 illegal transfers to solitary confinement, 114 attempted hunger strikes, 415 cases of forced transfer or exile of prisoners, 4,140 instances of threats and pressure on prisoners, 66 cases of denying prisoner visitation rights, 34 cases of psychological and physical torture, 7 deaths due to illness, 12 suicides, 1 case of self-immolation, 4 murders of prisoners, 208 instances of lack of access to legal counsel, 4,197 reports of prisoners being kept in unsuitable conditions, 80 cases of forced confession, 290 instances of non-segregation of crimes, 78 denials of medical leave, and 101 denials of the right to contact.

Two Inmates Executed in Bandar Abbas and Zahedan

On February 27, 2023, a female death-row prisoner convicted of drug-related crimes was executed in Bandar Abbas prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting the Baloch Activists Campaign, on February 27, 2023, a woman identified as Leila Bameri was executed in Bandar Abbas prison. Three years ago, she was arrested for drug-related crimes in Bandar Abbas.

She was reportedly executed without having a chance to visit her family for the last time. Bameri was the mother of a five-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy.

Rasank News also reported the execution of an inmate identified as Khosro Mohammadi, a resident of Shiraz, in Zahedan Prison on February 28. Four years ago, he was arrested for drug-related crimes.

None of the official sources and media outlets inside the country has reported these executions at the time of writing.

In 2022, the Department of Statistics and Publication of Human Rights Activists in Iran registered 457 reports related to the death penalty. This included 92 death sentences, including the conviction of 6 people to public execution and 565 execution sentences were carried out, 2 of which have been carried out in public. Based on the announced identifications of some of the executed individuals, 501 were male and 11 were female. In addition, 5 juvenile offenders were executed in 2022, meaning they were under the age of 18 at the time they committed the crime.

 

Three Inmates Executed in Zanjan, One in Zahedan

Last Wednesday, October 13, three inmates who had previously been sentenced to death on drug-related charges were hanged in Zanjan Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Iran Human Rights, 41-year-old Hamed Jafar-Zadeh, 39-year-old Soheil Hojjat-Far,  and Yunes (last name unknown ) were executed in Zanjan Prison.

The Baloch Activists Campaign also reported the execution of one inmate in Zahedan Prison on Monday, October 18. According to this report, two days ago, Musa Sheh-bakhsh was transferred to a solitary confinement cell in order to be executed. The charges for which he was convicted are still unknown.

The most recent report of the Statistics and Publication Center of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) states that between October 8 of 2020 and October 9 of 2021, at least 266 citizens, including three juvenile offenders, were executed and 90 citizens were sentenced to death.

As the report points out, Iran’s judicial authorities do not publicly announce over 82% of carried-out executions, dubbed as “secret executions” by human rights organizations.

None of these executions have been announced by official sources in Iran as of this writing.

Inmate Executed in Iranshahr Prison in Sistan and Baluchistan Province

On Saturday, September 11, Adham Maksani, a native of Shamsabad village of Bampour district, was executed in Iranshahr Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting The Baloch Activists Campaign, Maksani was previously sentenced to death for murder and had spent 10 years in Iranshahr prison.

Iran ranks first in the world in citizen executions per capita, according to international organizations. The Statistics and Publication Center of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) reported that between January 1 and December 20 of 2020, at least 236 citizens were executed.

One of these citizens was executed publicly, and two were juvenile offenders. An additional 95 citizens were sentenced to death. According to the same report, more than 72% of executions in Iran are not reported by the government or the judiciary, which human rights organizations call “secret” executions.

As of this writing, the execution of Mr. Maksani has not been announced by Iranian media or official sources.