Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); 28 July 2026: Shamseddin Afshari, a man on death row for murder, and Faraj Yahyayi, a man on death row for rape, were executed in Zanjan Central Prison. Shamseddin’s execution was carried out due to his inability to pay the 10 billion toman bloody money demanded by the victim’s family.
According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were hanged in Zanjan Central Prison on 26 July 2026. Their identities have been established as Shamseddin Afshari, 51-year-old father of four from Zanjan and 28-year-old Faraj Yahyayi from Khorram Dareh who worked at a greengrocer in Asgharieh Street.
Shamseddin was arrested sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder and Faraj was arrested two years ago and sentenced to death for rape by the Criminal Court.
An informed source told IHRNGO: “Shamseddin made a living collecting and selling second-hand goods with his Nissan pickup truck. On 14 October 2024, he got into an altercation with an individual attempting to steal from inside his vehicle in Abhar county. During the confrontation, Shamseddin struck the person on the head with a sharp object, causing his death. The victim's family demanded 10 billion tomans (approx. €45,000) as bloody money, but Shamseddin, who lived in rented accommodation and whose only asset was that vehicle, was unable to raise the demanded sum.”
At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
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.
Crucially, while an indicative diya amount is set by the Judiciary every year, there is no legal limit to how much can be demanded by families of the victims. IHRNGO has recorded many cases where defendants are executed because they cannot afford to pay the blood money. Should the victim’s family choose execution, they are not only encouraged to attend, but also to physically carry out the execution themselves.
According to IHRNGO’s 2025 Annual Report on the Death Penalty, at least 747 people including 48 women, were executed for murder charges, the highest number of qisas executions since 2010. Under 7% of the recorded qisas executions were announced by official sources. In 2025, IHRNGO also recorded 566 cases of families choosing diya or forgiveness instead of qisas executions.