Capital punishment in Iran

Capital punishment in Iran is legal and applied. Capital punishment is possible for murder, rape, adultery, pedophilia, sodomy, drug trafficking, moharebeh (waging war on people or God), and mofsed-e-filarz (spreading corruption on Earth). Around 180 people were executed in Iran in 2010. The overwhelming majority were drug traffickers, and virtually all executions are carried out for murder, aggravated rape, large scale drug trafficking, treason, and armed robbery (cases usually resulting in rape/death/attempted murder).

Iran has garnered Western media attention and criticism for allegedly carrying out executions of minors despite having signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which forbids executing "child" offenders for crimes committed under the age of 18. However, Iran claims dispensation in cases where the Convention is deemed "incompatible with Islamic jurisprudence". Iran has also been criticized for allegedly using stoning as capital punishment, though an Iranian judiciary spokesman fiercely denied the accusations of stoning and executing minors, describing it as propaganda against the Iranian state. Iran is claimed to have the second highest execution rate in the world (second to China), although other countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Nigeria allegedly carry out secret executions.

Executions of women in Iran happen less often, though four women were executed in Iran in 2010.

Capital crimes

Death sentences in Iran are, in theory, legal for eight different crimes: armed robbery, treason, murder, drug trafficking, rape, pedophilia, sodomy, kidnapping, and terrorism. The overwhelming majority of executions in 2011 were for murder, large scale drug trafficking, and aggravated rape. A few were also carried out for armed robbery, treason, and terrorism.^{[citation needed]}

There are four classes of crimes in Iranian law: "qesas" crimes, "hadd" crimes, "tazir" crimes, and deterrent crimes.

Court System

In Iran, French civil law is the primary legal system used in practice, along with Sharia law. Often, some crimes have names derived from Sharia law, yet the law itself is from the pre-Iranian Revolution legal code.

There are three types of criminal courts. Criminal courts of first instance try serious offenses, such as murder, rape, and theft. These courts can issue death sentences. Criminal courts of second instance try lighter offenses. The Islamic Revolutionary Courts try offenses aimed against the state and its associated institutions. Crimes include smuggling (e.g. of drugs or weapons), terrorism, counterfeiting, treason, and more. The revolutionary courts can also issue death sentences.

Executions are generally carried out in the main prison of the province/county the crime took place in, or in more serious cases, the execution may be carried out in public near the scene of the crime.

A death sentence can be appealed to the Supreme Court of Iran, which can either confirm the sentence or send the case to a lower court for retrial. While in serious cases or cases where the condemned's guilt is certain, the process may last only several months, in other cases, numerous appeals can be filed that can take years to finish.

In 2011, an amendment to Iran's "Dangerous Drugs Act" removed the right of appeal for certain types of drug offenders. Instead, the case would be referred to the Prosecutor-General of Iran, who would judge the matter in a similar manner to an appeal court. The official reason was that due to the high level of drug cases, the appeals court system was being slowed down.

Typically, due to appeals, most cases take an average of 2–7 years. Authorities may delay execution until the completion of a prison sentence. Politically sensitive cases or cases where the culprit's guilt is obvious may move much quicker.

In Iran (like in other Muslim countries), there are two types of sentences resulting in death. The first is a "qesas-e-nafs" sentence, meaning "retribution", when the murder victim's family refuses to forgive a murderer (see "Qesas crimes" below). The other type is a regular death sentence, "hokm-e-edam", for crimes such as rape and drug trafficking. These sentences are completely separate in Iranian law, and this has created some confusion in news sources when authorities say that a murder will not result in "execution", but in "qesas".

Offenders under age 18

In February 2012 Iran adopted a new penal code, which banned the death penalty for minors under the age of 18, "social penalties" and "educational programs". Minors who commit murder aged 15-18 can still receive the death penalty if the judge is confident that the criminals are mentally developed as adults and the crime is conducted intentionally and with a well-thought-through-plan. However for teenagers by default and for young adults (older than 18) with low mental development, execution is not used as punishment.

An issue among human rights groups and Western media has been the execution of criminals under the age of 18 years in Iran. Despite signing the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Iran, according to claims from human rights groups, is the world's biggest executioner of juvenile offenders. This has been ascribed to the difference in definition of a "minor" between non-Muslim and (some) Muslim countries. Article 49 of the Islamic Penal Code in Iran defines a child as "someone who has not reached the age of puberty (bulugh) as stipulated by Islamic law and as specified in the 1991 Civil Code as 15 years for boys and 9 years for girls (but for the sake of uniformity the law treats one as an adult at age 15 prior to 2007, after 2007 at the age of 18)."

Between 1979 and 2007, the legal age in Iran was 15 years: those 15 or older could vote and could receive the death penalty. The legal age was raised to 18 in 2007. Since 1995, Iran's Supreme Court has commuted non-murder death sentences to 2–8 years imprisonment, although there have been a few notable cases where this did not happen (see child rapists Ayaz Marhoni and Mahmoud Asgari).

In 2008, Iran passed the Decriminalization Bill. Among the provisions of the bill was that nobody under the age of 18 could be executed for crimes other than murder. Juveniles over 15 could receive the death penalty if they committed murder and if the judge believed they were not mentally retarded and were mature enough to have committed the murder with "malice and forethought", providing that the victim's family did not forgive them. It also stated that murderers of any age who were mentally retarded or compromised at the time of the crime at any age could not be sentenced to death (although they are still subject to diyyeh). This coincided with Iran raising the legal age from 15 to 18 in 2007 and cemented Iran's ban of juvenile executions.

Although Iran is the focus of juvenile executions, other countries, like Sudan and Saudi Arabia, legally carry them out, while others, like China, Nigeria, and Pakistan, allegedly carry them out illegally with little to no rebuke from international organizations. Until 2005, some U.S. states also carried out juvenile executions (see Roper v. Simmons).

Qesas crimes (murder)

In Sharia law, a qesas crimes are a class of crime that can receive retribution. They are prosecuted under Iran's qesas laws. Intentional murder (ghatl-e-amnd) is the only qesas crime resulting in death. Diyyeh and qesas is a private settlement claim between the victim's family and the perpetrator. The state simply convicts the perpetrator, which is different from the United States, where the government also will punish the criminal. Qesas crimes call for retribution, a "life for a life" (execution) in the case of murder, unless the victim's family forgives the criminal by accepting diyya, a money settlement to compensate the loss of life. If the family refuses to accept the money, the murderer will receive qesas: they are executed in retribution for intentionally taking life (qesas-e-nafs). Only the forgiveness from the family can stop execution; the state may not commute a qesas-e-nafs sentence. The conviction, but not the sentence, can be appealed. Judges may only recommend the course of action the family takes, and usually try to get the family to forgive the murderer. There have been some cases where the family was pressured by the judge to make one decision or the other. It is not known what percent of families give mercy. If the criminal is forgiven, the murder charges are annulled; and the murderer would normally receive a prison sentence.

If the family demands retribution, they cannot receive compensation (diyya).

In multiple murders, the murderer may be found guilty of "moharebeh" (waging war against God) rather than "qesas", and he cannot be forgiven by the victim's families, but rather executed. If the murderer committed another crime, such as drug trafficking, he/she can still be executed for that crime.

Diyya tables are set every year by Iran's government. Diyya is doubled if the murder is committed during holy months, Ramadan and Muharram, since they are seen as twice as bad.

Women officially receive one-half the amount of diyya do in murder cases (though they receive equal amounts of diyya in accidental death cases); however, in practice, judges usually award women equal amounts of blood money.

Hadd crimes

Since Sharia law is subject to several interpretations, the hadd (hudud) crimes are not necessarily the same in all countries. Hadd crimes are a class of crime laid down in the Koran, and considered to be very serious felonies. Such crimes are tried under Iran's Hadd Laws, and their punishments are laid down in the Koran and Hadith. Hadd crimes must be proven by confession, two witnesses (four witnesses in the case of adultery adultery), or in rare cases, by "judge's knowledge" (where, based on available evidence, the defendant's guilt is extremely obvious). If the prosecution cannot provide the proof for a hadd crime, it becomes tried as the lesser tazir crime. However, the application of the hadd crimes differ significantly in Iran than they do under classical Sharia law.

Moharebeh (waging war against God or people) and mofsed-e-filarz (spreading corruption on the earth) are considered to be crimes in which a weapon was used with violence to "create fear or disruption against national security and citizens." They punishable by either death or exile to prison. They could be used against serious cases of armed robbery/armed kidnapping (with violence committed). Multiple murders and rapes could also lead to a moharebeh/mofsed-e-filarz conviction.

However, moharebeh/mofsed-e-filarz is famous throughout the world for being really a political charge disguised as a religious crime. It is often levied against those involved in espionage, treason, activism, opposition to the government, or "terrorism". In 2008, "operation of prostitution rings" and "running pornographic websites" was added to the list. Large scale economic crimes if disrupting the economy is also punishable by death in some cases as mofsed-e-filarz.

Adultery/sex crimes (zina):

• Adultery (zina-e-mohsen) is punishable by 100 lashes for unmarried people, and by death on the fourth offense. It is punishable by death by stoning (under moratorium since 2002, officially replaced by hanging in 2012) for married people, or for incest. If an unmarried non-Muslim male had sexual relations with a Muslim female, the non-Muslim male would be put to death. Four witnesses (rather than two witnesses) must prove adultery, or the person must confess four times, or by judge's knowledge (through definite circumstantial evidence). If the person confesses twice and is "repentant", the judge can either sentence them to 100 lashes or death. Executions for this crime are extremely rare, usually carried out if somebody died.

• Rape (zina-be-onf) has the same requrements as adultery (4 witnesses), and if punishable by death. However, judges often are more relaxed about evidence rules, in order to ensure that rapists get convicted. Also, the rapist could be prosecuted for "moharebeh" instead, and sentenced to death for that crime (requires less proof). It is often similar to qesas cases, if the rape victim forgives the rapist, they would not be executed.

Sodomy (lavat) is punishable by death. The judge will determine what type of death (in practice usually hanging). The proof requirements are the same as for "zina" (4 witnesses), and such sentences are very rare. If one of the consenting participants was under 18, the punishment is 100 lashes for him. In lesser cases, the judge can give a discretionary (tazir) sentence.

• Sodomy rape (lavat-be-onf) is sodomy rape, and is punishable by death for the rapist. Proof requirements are the same, most lavat executions are for rape.

Apostasy (murrtaad) is not in the penal code a capital crime (or even any crime) in Iran, however, in some serious cases (or political related cases), since the judge is the one who interprets Sharia law, the apostate may still prosecuted for it anyway. and the death sentence could be given for a male, the last such execution was in 1990. For women, the maximum sentence is life in prison.

Blasphemy (sabb-al-nabi) of the Prophet Muhammad, his daughter, and his family is a legal charge in Iran, and if somebody is found guilty of that, by default, they could also be found guilty of apostasy. It is punishable by death/imprisonment.

For all other hadd crimes, the fourth offense would be a capital offense.

All hadd crimes are (zina): rape, adultery, incest; sodomy (lavat), theft (serghat-e-haddi), apostasy, lesbianism (mosahegheh), false accusation of sex crimes (ghazf), pimping (ghavvadi), drunkenness (maasti), and moharebeh (waging war on God)/mofsed-e-filarz (spreading corruption on earth). For all but the most serious cases the crime is punished through the tazir code and given a discretionary sentence.

In July 2005 the Iranian Student News Agency covered the execution of Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni in Mashhad for "lavat be onf" (sodomy rape) of a 13-year-old boy, which drew international attention when disturbing photos of the hanging were widely distributed around the Internet. The executions of the two teenagers divided the human rights community over whether it was a gay issue; all human rights groups condemned the hangings as they were for crimes allegedly committed when the boys were minors. The initial report from the Iranian Student News Agency, a government press agency, had stated that they were hanged for sodomizing and raping a 13-year-old boy (his father was interviewed about the case in the local Mashad newspaper). Internet gay advocacy groups such as OutRage! asserted that they were hanged for being homosexuals; other groups, in light of evidence that the teenagers were convicted of rape, emphasized that the executions were a violation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Iran is a signatory to both), which prohibit the execution of minors. After the international outcry, the Iranian government stated once again the hangings were for raping the boy. Human Rights Watch, while not agreeing with the brutality of the hangings, stated it was "deeply disturbed about the apparent indifference of many people to the alleged rape of a 13-year-old". Under a change in Iranian laws since then, these two boys would not have been executed if their crime had occurred today, since only murderers can be executed if under 18.

Iran hangs man who claimed to be God: report, (AFP) – Jan 31, 2011</ref>

Tazir/Deterrent crimes

In Islamic criminal jurisprudence, a tazir crime is a crime that receives a discretionary punishment by a judge. A "deterrent crime" is a crime with a fixed sentence. A tazir crime is similar to a misdemeanor, a "deterrent" crime is equal to a second degree felony, and fixed by the laws of the state. The only exception is drug trafficking, as there is no official hudud penalty for drug crimes, it is punished by death as a tazir/deterrent crime.

Crimes against national security are crimes that are "treason-related/compromising national security". They may punished as moharebeh/mofsed-e-filarz in serious cases (see above).

Arms smuggling can be considered to be "moharebeh" and punishable by death if: 1) Smuggling heavy weapons (such as bombs/artillery) or radioactive weapons 2) Armed resistance to police/armed criminal acts while smuggling weapons, or if the weapons were intended for terrorist/anti-government groups.

Human trafficking is punishable by death as "moharebeh" if the person was under 18 years of age, or if rape/murder/financial exploitation occurred. Operation of prostitution rings is also punishable by death of "mofsed-e-filarz" and "moharebeh".

Large scale fraud or counterfeiting if enough to disrupt the "financial stability of the Islamic Republic", or "intentionally aimed at undermining the government" is punishable by death as "mofsed-e-filarz".

According to Iran's Anti-Narcotics Law, possession of narcotics is punishable by death if:

1) Possession of over 30 grams (1.1 ounce) of heroin/morphine/cocaine/LSD/methamphetamine, and such drugs. The death sentence could be waived if it was the criminal's first offense where the sale was not accomplished and/or the amount was less than 100 grams (3.5 ounces), or repeat offenses where collective amount was 30-100 grams.

2) Possession of over 5000 grams/5 kilograms (11.02 lbs) of opium/hasish/cannabis (could be waived if was first offense and sale was not accomplished and amount less than 20 kilograms) (44.1 lbs); or third conviction of 5–20 kg of such drugs.

3) Possession of more than 5 kilograms of prescription/industrial drugs for illegal use, or repeat conviction of 5-20 kilograms of such drugs.

4) Repeat conviction of growing opium poppies for drug use, or for growing cannabis.

5) Armed smuggling of any illegal narcotics, if armed crimes committed while possessing any amount of drugs, or if the person was a member or head of a narcotics trafficking gang.

Drug crimes/smuggling and crimes against the stability of the country are tried in the Revolutionary Court system, a special court that handles such cases relating to national security. In 2011, the right of appeal was revoked for certain drug crimes, instead the case would be appealed to the Prosecutor-General of Iran. The presiding judge could recommend that the criminal be sentenced to life imprisonment instead of the death penalty, and often that happens. The Amnesty and Pardons Commission also can commute a death sentence to life in prison.

Iran is currently fighting a major drug war on its provinces in the east, primarily Sistan and Baluchistan province and parts of Khorasan province. Since Iran borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, the two largest opium-producing countries in the world, Iran is a major trafficking route to Europe and the west. Since 2000, up to 2,000 Iranian soldiers have died fighting armed drug cartels and smugglers. Most of Iran's executions are related to drug trafficking, a recent announcement by the judiciary said that 74 percent of executions in Iran were drug related.^{[citation needed]}.

Methods

Firing squad

The firing squad is legal, but seldom used in Iran today, but was used historically for military and political crimes. In 1974, under the Shah's regime, Marxist activists Khosrow Golesorkhi and Keramat Daneshian were executed by firing squad on charges of conspiring to kidnap Reza Pahlavi, the Crown Prince of Iran. They were shot after a televised trial in Tehran. This case was one of the big events that turned the opinion of the public against the Shah. During the reign of the shah, 1,000 or more people were sentenced to death for crimes against the government, mostly by firing squad after conviction by a special SAVAK military tribunal. After the 1953 coup, scores of Communists were executed. Also, many known people and dissidents had also died under suspicious circumstances, and were possibly murdered by SAVAK (such as wrestler Gholam-Reza Takhti, Dr. Ali Shariati, and Ayatollah Khomeini's brother Mostapha Khomeini). Common criminals were executed mostly by hanging.

In the years after the Islamic Revolution, hundreds, if not thousands of people were shot, many for "drug trafficking," and for crimes against the Islamic Republic by the newly established Revolutionary Courts, including many of the Shah's former ministers, such as former Prime Minister Amir Abbas Hoveida, head of SAVAK General Nematollah Nassiri, and others. By 1980, almost 700 people had been shot. Many of the members of the former regime who were executed innocent of any crime and unjustly executed. A campaign on drug trafficking resulted in the executions of many for drug possession, including addicts, often based on flimsy evidence. Some were alleged to be regime opponents as well. In 1979-1980, there was a revolt in Kurdistan, and many executions also took place there too.

While executions had dropped by 1980, after the start of the Iran-Iraq War, a crackdown on dissidents, political opponents, and common criminals caused executions to increase, and in 1981-1984, in a crackdown against opponents and terrorist groups, such as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq organization, coupled with the assassination of many government officials, prompted a massive crackdown against sympathizers to the organization, dissidents, and even innocent people. Possibly 8,000 were shot for political reasons then, and the true numbers may be higher. Many others were hanged (or sometimes shot) for other crimes, such as adultery, robbery, murder, and drug trafficking.

In 1982, a purge of the communists in Iran (such as the Tudeh Party) resulted in the executions of the party's leaders and other members as well. Political executions continued on a lesser scale. When the Islamic Penal Code of Iran was adopted in 1982, ordinary crimes began to be carried out by hanging once again by regular, non-Revolutionary courts. Political opponents continued to be shot by Revolutionary Courts, but on a lesser scale.

But in 1988, after a invasion by the Mujahideen-e-Khalq organization (see Operation Mersad), the government secretly executed 2,000-8,000 political prisoners, many former members or sympathizers of the Mujahedeen group, former communists, and other dissidents. Those executed had all renounced their former ties to their old opposition organizations (or else they would have been previously executed), and many were about to finish their prison sentences when they were suddenly and secretly executed. Those who were executed were executed for "moharebeh" or "apostasy", in a gross example of using a religious charge for political reasons. They were executed by hanging for most part, although a few were executed by firing squad as well.

Since then,political executions have been relatively rare, although extrajudicial killing of high profile regime opponents still continued (it has been rare since 1998). (Chain Murders in Iran). There have been a few questionable deaths and political related executions even recently. Since the late 1980s virtually all executions have been carried out by hanging, both political or criminal. There are allegations that a few of the "criminals" who are executed are really political prisoners fasely charged.

Critics of the Revolutionary Courts complained about the process, stating that the trials lacked defense attorneys, were too short (often lasting hours, even minutes), and could not be appealed, there was a lack of evidence and convictions were often based on strong rumors. Many people were sent to the courts on little to no evidence, and were unjustly prosecuted and punished, simply because the opposed the regime. They also complained that the judges were biased, unfair, and were too rigid, and used the death sentence much too often, and that some of the prisoners did not deserve to be executed (or even arrested). Also, many confessions were gained by torturing the defendants. To make matters worse, when asked what if somebody was wrongfully executed, one of the judges said that an innocent person "Would receive a reward by God in heaven", so little care was taken to see if the accused were actually guilty of the crimes they were accused of.

Ayatollah Khomeini himself was sentenced to death by firing squad for treason against the Shah in 1964 by a military court, but his sentence was commuted to exile in Iraq (General Hassan Pakravan, another head of SAVAK, who helped commute Khomeini's sentence, was one of the first shot upon Khomeini's return). In 1980 Jahangir Razmi won the Pulitzer Prize for his famous photo Firing Squad in Iran" which showed seven Kurds and two Shah's policemen being executed minutes after being convicted for "terrorism and crimes against God" by a Revolutionary Court judge in the airport in Sanandaj, during a revolt by Kurdish armed groups. Their trial lasted 30 minutes.

One of the most famous "hanging" judges in Iran was a cleric, Sadegh Khalkhali, the first head of the Revolutionary Court, who sentenced drug traffickers and former members of the Shah's government alike to be shot. Incidentally, he was the same judge who convicted the men in Razmi's photo minutes before it was taken. He personally sentenced 800-2,000 people to death.

After many years of not being used, the firing squad was last used in 2008, to execute a man convicted of raping 17 children, according to the Fars News Agency. It is not known why this method was used rather than hanging.

Hanging

Iran is said to be the first country in the world to adopt hanging, 2,500 years ago^{[citation needed]}. Hanging is virtually the sole method of execution in 21st-century Iran; the execution is usually carried out in prison.

Compared to many other countries that use hanging (such as Japan or Malaysia) which use a complex gallows designed to drop the condemned and break his/her neck, Iran's gallows are very simple, consisting of only a frame and a stool. Some stools can hold up to 7 people at a time and have wheels. In public, executions are usually carried out by a mobile crane, suspending the criminal high in the air, or on a mobile gallows. Iranian nooses are thick and have 7–10 knotted coils and are often made of blue plastic rope, and little to no drop is given. Death is caused by strangulation and carotid reflex (where blood vessels to the head are cut off), taking 10–20 minutes. However, in most cases the death is peaceful, and the condemned loses consciousness quickly.

Famous hangings in Iran throughout the ages were Haman from the Bible, Sheikh Fazlollah Nouri in 1908, serial killer Mohammed Bijeh, the "Desert Vampire" who raped and murdered 17 boys in 2005, and many more. At dawn on July 27, 2007, 29 men were hanged in Evin Prison on various charges of murder and drug trafficking. In 2010, Shahla Jahed was hanged in Tehran for the 2002 murder of the wife of Iran footballer Nasser Mohammadkhani. In 2009, a public execution of two men in Sirjan for armed robbery was broken up when relatives stormed the gallows and cut the men down while still alive; they were later recaptured and hanged until dead. A video of the incident was posted on the Internet^{[citation needed]}.

Stoning

Further information: Stoning and Rajm

Stoning to death for adultery was added to the Islamic Penal Code in 1983. In 2012, it officially was removed from the code, replaced by hanging. In 1986, Soraya Manutchehri was stoned to death in Kuhpayeh after being convicted of adultery, leading to a 1990 novel, La Femme Lapidée, by Freidoune Sahebjam and a 2008 film based on the novel, The Stoning of Soraya M..

A moratorium was placed on stoning due to adultery in 2002. Stoning is legal for "zina" (sex crimes), which constitutes adultery (zina-e-mohsen). Many Muslim jurists in Iran are of the opinion that although stoning can be considered Islamic, the criteria under which it can be imposed as a sentence are stringent; because of the large burden of proof needed to reach a guilty sentence of adultery; the penalty is hardly ever applicable. The person could also be sentenced to be hanged rather than stoned.

Following vociferous domestic and international controversy and outcry over stoning in the early years of the Islamic republic, the government placed a moratorium on stoning in 2002. In January 2005, the Iranian judiciary spokesman Jamal Karimirad was quoted as saying, "Stoning has been dropped from the penal code for a long time, and in the Islamic republic, we do not see such punishments being carried out", further adding that if stoning sentences were passed by lower courts, they were over-ruled by higher courts and "no such verdicts have been carried out." In 2007 and 2009, the moratorium was broken in two cases for men being stoned for murder and adultery, after Karimirad's report took place.

In 2008 Iran's judiciary scrapped stoning in draft legislation submitted to parliament for approval. As of June 2009, Iran's parliament has been reviewing and revising the Islamic penal code to omit stoning. It was finally passed in 2012, officially ending the punishment of stoning.

Sakineh Ashtiani was sentenced to death for murder and adultery. After international outcry, she was given a stay of execution. Her case is in a legal limbo as of November 2010. Isa Taheri, the man who she was a co-conspirator with (and one of the men she committed adultery with) was given 10 years imprisonment for murder after paying diyya to the family.^{[citation needed]}

Two men, aged 20 and 21, were condemned to be stoned for sodomy in January 2011 following evidence on their mobile phones of them having sex with a 17-year-old. It was reported that the youth was raped, amid claims he was pressured by police to give evidence in exchange for his life. Date of execution was set for 21 January 2011. However, there was no report on whether they were actually executed.

Typical execution

In prison

In Iran, executions take place in the main prison of the county the crime took place. It is after their appeal/pardon was rejected, and after they completed any outstanding prison terms. Criminals from Tehran are hanged in Ghezelhesar Prison, or Evin Prison. In the Karaj area, Gohardasht Prison carries out executions. Tehran's Qasr Prison also conducted executions until it closed in 2005. In Mashhad, executions are carried out in Vakilabad Prison The gallows are typically located in an indoor room or in a remote courtyard.

Two days prior to the execution, the prisoner is informed of his execution date, and moved to a special solitary confinement cell. In murder (or rape), both the victim's and prisoner's family are required to be there by law, in order to keep the possibility of an forgiveness settlement open (diyyeh). In non-murder executions, often the prisoner's family is informed after the fact. Often, the condemened may see his/her relatives prior to the execution.

The executions are carried out at 4:00 AM local time, just before the call for morning salah (prayer). When the platform is moved away, the condemned dies of strangulation and loss of blood to the brain. Usually they fall unconscious within seconds. If the condemned struggles after being released, the prison guards will typically pull down on the rope to speed up the death.

In the case of a murder, the victim's next of kin is sometimes allowed to pull the stool out from the condemned. There have been occasions where the victim's family pardoned the murderer right at the foot of the gallows. A few times, the person was pardoned and cut down from the gallows after he was hanging, and lived.

In public

Public executions in Iran are less common, sometimes applied to those found guilty of crimes such as gang rape, child murder, murder during an armed robbery, or massive drug trafficking. Public executions were restricted in most cases by Reza Shah in the late 1920s, but became common after the Islamic Revolution, usually carried out from mobile cranes. They take place when the prosecutor requests and the judge accepts that since the criminal's crimes were so terrible they "caused public outrage", he/she must die at the spot that the crime was committed. The Supreme Court must also approve the sentence. It is estimated about 5-10% of executions are carried out in public, usually around 6:00am local time.

In 2002, the "Black Vultures", the nickname of a group of 5 men who assaulted and gang raped dozens of women in northern Tehran were hanged in public from cranes, 2 in the main bus terminal, and 3 in the main square of Lavizan district. On August 2, 2007, Maijid and Hossein Kavousifar were hanged in downtown Tehran for murdering a judge, and shooting and killing two innocent bystanders during an earlier bank robbery. Majid was unrepentant of his crime and laughed into cameras before he was hanged. They were executed at the intersection that they murdered Judge Hassan Moghhadas in. A video of him and other criminals describing their crimes was also posted on YouTube. On January 5, 2011, a man only identified by Iranian media as "Yaghub" was hanged in the main square of the Sa'adat Abad district in Tehran, where he had in October 2010 murdered a man by repeatedly stabbing him, and while the man bled to death, "Yaghub" stood over the victim threatening to kill anyone who intervened. The murder was recorded on a mobile phone.

See also

• 1988 executions of Iranian political prisoners
• Human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran
• LGBT rights in Iran
• Women's rights in Iran

External links

• REALITE-EU New Amnesty International Report: Iran #2 Country in Death Penalty Executions
• Sodomy Laws: Iran
• Iran elites: No capital punishment for -18s (PressTV)