The death penalty is a clear manifestation of the arbitrary deprivation of the fundamental right to life — a right explicitly protected in binding international instruments, including Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Far from serving the cause of justice, execution represents a form of structural violence and systematic state killing that stands in complete contradiction to human dignity and the core principles of human rights.
Historically, authoritarian and ideological regimes have used the death penalty as a tool for political elimination, suppression of dissent, and instilling fear within society. The Islamic Republic of Iran is a stark example of such state-organized violence. Since its establishment, it has systematically employed execution as an instrument against political opponents, civil activists, ethnic and religious minorities, and even ordinary citizens.
In Kurdistan, the use of the death penalty began intensively in the early days following the 1979 revolution. The issuance of the so-called “Jihad in Kurdistan” decree by Ayatollah Khomeini, followed by mass executions carried out by Sadegh Khalkhali, marked the beginning of a pattern that continues to this day. Summary trials lasting only a few minutes, denial of access to independent legal counsel, coerced confessions under torture, and secret executions have been the hallmarks of this unlawful and inhumane practice.
According to official data from Amnesty International, the Islamic Republic of Iran recorded one of the highest execution rates in the world in 2025. In just the first nine months of the year, more than 1,100 people have been executed nationwide. Verified reports by the Hana Human Rights Organization further indicate that since the beginning of this year, at least 128 individuals have been executed in the Kurdistan region alone — including three on charges of “espionage for Israel” and two others accused of “enmity against God (moharebeh).” Many of these executions followed opaque judicial proceedings that failed to meet the standards of fair trial and were carried out without access to a lawyer of choice.
Information obtained from families of the condemned reveals that death-row prisoners — particularly those in prisons across Kurdistan — are denied their most basic rights, including access to medical care, the right to visits and communication, and protection from torture and ill-treatment. These conditions represent grave violations of Iran’s international obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention Against Torture.
The World Day Against the Death Penalty is a reminder of the shared responsibility of the international community to uphold the right to life and to resist the death-oriented policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It is a day to reaffirm the urgent need for global solidarity toward the total abolition of the death penalty and the promotion of justice grounded in human dignity.
The Hana Human Rights Organization strongly condemns all forms of capital punishment, viewing it as an instrument of fear and political repression that fundamentally contradicts human rights principles and universal human values. The organization once again calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran to immediately halt all executions, take concrete steps toward an official moratorium, and ultimately abolish the death penalty from national legislation, in full compliance with its international human rights obligations.
Hana Human Rights Organization
October 10, 2025