Three Men Including Afghan National Executed in Karaj

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, three men were executed in Karaj Penitentiary on December 20. The identity of one of the men has been established as Mehdi Kamranifar who was sentenced to death for drug-related charges. His co-defendant’s identity has not been established at the time of writing.

The identity of the third prisoner who was an Afghan national and sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder has also not been established.

At the time of writing, none of their executions have been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

On December 17, Karaj Penitentiary prisoners had started a riot in protest to Mehdi Kamranifar being transferred for execution. 31-year-old Mohsen Mansouri was one of the prisoners who lost his life that day.

Those charged with the umbrella term of “intentional murder” are sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) regardless of intent or circumstances due to a lack of grading in law. Once a defendant has been convicted, the victim’s family are required to choose between death as retribution, diya (blood money) or forgiveness.

More than 500 people including 2 juvenile offenders have been executed in 2022, the highest annual execution since 2017.