Iran added to its tally of capital punishment this year with the execution of four prisoners at jails on Wednesday.
Zabihollah Arjmand, 35, was hanged in Dehdasht Central Prison after being arrested in 2019 for drug trafficking and subsequently sentenced to death, as reported by US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
Two Kurdish prisoners, Khaled Rouhi and Sirous Heydari, were executed in Sanandaj Central Prison for charges of murder. Human Rights Organization Hangaw reported that Heydari had been sentenced to death 12 years ago, while Khaled Rouhi had been condemned to death four years ago.
Another prisoner in Saqqez Central Prison was also executed after being sentenced to death on rape charges.
In October, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reported to the General Assembly on human rights violations in Iran, warning that at least 419 executions had been carried out in the first seven months of the year alone, marking a 30 percent rise compared to the same period in 2022. More than half of those sentenced to death had been found guilty of charges related to drug crimes.
The Iran Human Rights Organization reported on Thursday that the number of executions carried out by the Islamic Republic since the beginning of this year has reached 707 individuals, marking an unprecedented increase over the past eight years.