Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); 10 February 2026: Taha Shirazad and Kazem Farajinejad, two men on death row for drug-related offences, were executed in Sari Central Prison.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were hanged in Sari Central Prison on 10 February 2026. Their identities have been established as Taha Shirzad and Kazem Farajinejad, a 48-year-old father of two. Both men were Sari natives and arrested around three years ago. They were sentenced to death on drug-related charges in separate cases by the Revolutionary Court.
An informed source told IHRNGO: “Throughout the past three years, Kazem consistently maintained his innocence. He repeatedly stated that the drugs discovered had no connection to him and that one or more individuals had planted the substances inside his car without his knowledge. However, the judiciary, disregarding these defences, issued and carried out his death sentence.”
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 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 697 people were executed for drug-related offences in the first eleven months of 2025.
In December 2025, IHRNGO published a report titled “A Village of Graves: Widespread and Systematic Drug Executions in Iran,” which provides an overview of drug laws and documents the systematic violation of due process and fair trial rights in drug cases.