3 Men Hanged for Drug Offences in Karaj

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, three men were hanged in Karaj Penitentiary (Central Prison) on 26th January 2025. Their identities have been established as Farhad Fardini (middle photo), Samad Hashemi (right photo) and Farzad Mirzaei (left photo), all natives of Harsin in Kermanshah.

They were arrested for being in possession of 28.5 kilograms of morphine seven years ago and sentenced to death on drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

They were transferred to the pre-execution solitary confinement cells on Thursday.

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. In the first six months of 2024, at least 147 people were executed for the charges.

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.”