2 Afghan Relatives Executed for Drug Charges in Shiraz

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two Afghan men were executed in Shiraz (Adel Abad) Central Prison on 30 June. Their identities have been established as Ali Allahbakhsh and Afzal Allahbakhsh who were on death row for drug-related charges.

An informed source told IHRNGO: “Ali and Afzal were relatives from Feiz Abad in Afghanistan. They were arrested for being in possession of drugs and two weapons in Shiraz three years ago.”

At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2023 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 471 people were executed for drug-related charges, an 84% increase compared to 2022 (256) and about 18 times the average of drug-related executions in 2018-2020.

On 10 April 2024, 80+ Iranian and international organisations and groups called for joint action to stop drug-related executions, urging UNODC to make “any cooperation with the Islamic Republic contingent on a complete halt on drug-related executions.”

It is important to note that Afghan nationals constitute the largest group of non-Iranian executions and death row cases in Iranian prisons. The number of their executions have been steadily rising since the Taliban takeover in 2021. At least five Afghan nationals were executed in 2021 which more than tripled in 2022, with 16 Afghan nationals including a juvenile offender and a woman executed. In 2023, at least 25 Afghans were executed, a 56% rise compared to the previous year.