Iran executed 11 detainees on Sunday and transferred a political prisoner to solitary confinement over the weekend ahead of his imminent execution, sparking fresh condemnation from rights groups.
Among the detainees executed, seven were hanged in Yazd Central Prison in central Iran and four in Zahedan Central Prison in the southeast, on charges of murder and drug-related crimes, Norway-based rights group Hengaw and local rights group Haalvsh reported Sunday.
Reports from rights groups indicate that at least 34 prisoners were executed in Iranian prisons between Wednesday to Sunday this week.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, political prisoner Saman Mohammadi-Khiyareh was transferred to solitary confinement in Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj – a move typically signaling an imminent execution.
His family has been summoned for a final visit, according to information obtained by Iran International.
Mohammadi-Khiyareh, arrested at 19, was sentenced to death on alleged charges of "waging war against God" through "membership in anti-regime groups."
Rights group Hengaw said that his death sentence was overturned last year and replaced with a 15-year prison term, with his release expected this year during Yalda Night, a national winter celebration. Despite this, he was transferred on Sunday, signaling the reversal of his commuted sentences.
A close associate of Mohammadi-Khiyareh told Hengaw that he was expected to be released during next week’s Yalda Night – an Iranian celebration of the winter solstice.
Hengaw reported that Mohammadi-Khiyareh was denied the right to choose his own lawyer during his trial and court proceedings.
He was reportedly subjected to severe torture during his detention, forcing him to make false confessions. He was coerced into admitting responsibility for the killing of Khalifeh Ebrahim Farhadi in Qorveh and the murder of a military officer in Sanandaj during the 2009 Green Movement protests, Hengaw added citing an informed source.
The news of Mohammadi-Khiyareh’s imminent execution comes as rights groups on Saturday reported the transfer of another political prisoner, Mohammad-Amin Mahdavi Shayesteh, to solitary confinement. Oslo-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) warned on Saturday that Shayesteh faces execution on charges of "insulting Islamic sanctities" and "collaboration with the enemy."
Iran’s escalating execution trend, coupled with the looming sentences for political prisoners, signals what rights groups describe as a deliberate effort by the Islamic Republic to instill fear and maintain control amid ongoing domestic unrest.
According to a November 21 report by US-based rights group HRANA, at least 133 executions were documented in the past month alone, averaging more than four per day. This follows data from the Iran Human Rights Organization, which recorded at least 166 executions in October.
HRANA’s reports reveal an annual average of 811 executions between October 2023 and October 2024, encompassing both political detainees and ordinary prisoners.
