Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); September 18, 2025: At least seven men were executed in Ghezelhesar Prison on Tuesday and Wednesday. Massoud Okhatizadeh, Akbar Emami, Ali Esmaili, Majid Hosseini, Omid Hassanzadeh, Rahman Sarlak and an unidentified Afghan national were all on death row for drug-related offences. Babak Shahbazi is confirmed to have been executed in a group hanging of six at the prison.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, at least two men were hanged in Ghezelhesar Prison on 16 September 2025. Their identities have been established as Massoud Okhatizadeh (centre left photo) from Kouhdasht and Akbar Emami (right photo) from Nourabad in Lorestan. They were both sentenced to death on drug-related charges.
The next day, on 17 September, five other men were executed in a group hanging at the prison. Four of them have been identified as Ali Esmaili (left photo), Majid Hosseini from Lorestan, Omid Hassanzadeh and Rahman Sarlak (centre right photo) from Kouhdasht. The fifth man, an Afghan national, has not been identified at the time of writing. They were all also on death row for drug-related offences.
An informed source told IHRNGO: “Majid Hosseini was arrested six years ago. Omid Hassanzadeh was arrested for 2 kilograms of shisheh (methamphetamines) and one kilogram and 700 grams of heroin. Rahman was arrested for 10 kilograms of narcotics four years ago.”
At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
State media reported the execution of Babak Shahbazi on 17 September. According to newly confirmed information, Babak was executed in a group hanging of six in Ghezelhesar Prison.
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. At least 426 people were executed for drug-related offences in the first eight months of 2025.