Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); April 10, 2025: Samir Ghasemi and Habib Aghayi, two men on death row for murder and drug-related offences respectively, were executed in Qom Central Prison.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was hanged in Qom Central Prison on 6 April 2025. His identity been established as Samir Ghasemi from Varamin. He was arrested four years ago and sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder by the Criminal Court.
Another man was also executed at the prison on 9 April. His identity has been established as 32-year-old Habib Aghayi (photo) from Karaj. He was arrested for drug-related offences two years ago and sentenced to death by the Revolutionary Court.
At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
Drug-related executions have continuously risen every year since 2021. According to IHRNGO’s 2024 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 503 people were executed for drug-related charges, of which only under 3% were announced by official sources. 17% of all drug-related executions in 2024 were Baluch minorities while they represent 2-6% of Iran’s population.
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.”