Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); August 20, 2024: Abbas Alayi Aghbolagh and Ali Azmoun were executed for drug-related charges in Tabriz Central Prison.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Tabriz Central Prison on 18 August. Their identities have been established as Abbas Alayi Aghbolagh (photo) and Ali Azmoun who were sentenced to death for drug-related offences.
An informed source told IHRNGO: “Abbas Alayi Aghbolagh was from Aghbolagh village in Meshgin Shahr and was arrested around four years ago. Ali Azmoun was arrested around two 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. In the first six months of 2024, at least 147 people were executed for the charges.