Executed on charges of “moharebeh”, “baghi”, “corruption on earth” or espionage

This page keeps the memory of 250 people who were executed on security and political charges, that is, moharebeh (enmity against God), baghi (armed rebellion), efsad-fil-arz (corruption on earth) or espionage. The earliest execution in this list is recorded on 21 Farvardin 1388 and the latest on 22 Mehr 1405. These titles are charges named by the authorities or sources, not our judgement of what these human beings did. Many of those listed here rejected the charge until the last day, spoke of torture and forced confessions, and were deprived of a lawyer of their own choosing.

Heavy days and years

One day in this list is heavier than all others: 12 Mordad 1395 with 23 names. The year 1405 with 47 names is the year with the most names in this list; it is followed by 1392 with 26 names, 1395 with 25 names, 1389 with 24 names and 1388 with 22 names. The days 23 Tir 1388 with 10 names, and 29 Azar 1389, 4 Aban 1392 and 16 Tir 1397 with 8 names each, are also days on which several people were hanged together.

Karaj with 55 names is the most frequent city, followed by Zahedan with 42, Tehran with 31, Urmia with 16 and Ahvaz with 15 names. Among the provinces, Alborz with 53 names, Sistan and Baluchestan with 43 and Tehran with 33 names are at the top. The youngest person executed on this page was 18 years old and the oldest 62, and the median age is 31 years. No adolescent under 18 is recorded in this list, and 17 women appear in it whose source mentioned that they were women.

Some lives

Saleh Mohammadi was a 19-year-old wrestler and medal winner, and was executed on 28 Esfand 1404, together with two others, in Qom. The source writes that he “denied the murder charge and said the confessions were obtained under pressure”; according to those close to him, he was at his uncle's house at the time of the incident, but the court refused to summon the witnesses. Abolfazl Saedi, 24 years old, the only child of a mother who was a teacher, was executed in Khordad 1405 in Shahroud Prison. The source says about him that he “helped, as far as he could, children who had dropped out of school to continue their education.” His mother took his body in her arms and said: “Abolfazl, get up, let's go home.”

Majid Adineh, a retired military man from Karaj, had, according to the source, supported orphaned children and homeless people for nearly two decades. He was executed in Shahrivar 1405 on the charge of “operational action in favour of Israel, America and hostile groups.” His relatives say that he had gone to the gathering on foot that night.

Zanyar Moradi, 30 years old, and Loghman Moradi, 35 years old, were executed on the morning of 17 Shahrivar 1397 in Evin Prison. Loghman had been the breadwinner of his family since adolescence, had worked as a kolbar (cross-border porter), and his last job was as a crane driver; the source calls him “a kind, patient and humorous person.” Zanyar had said: “I was ready to accept death rather than return to those conditions.” Loghman's family heard the news of the execution from a news agency. Hossein Khezri, 28 years old, left school because of poverty and worked in a carpet-weaving workshop; according to his lawyer, he “lost 70 percent of his eyesight.” He was secretly executed on 25 Dey 1389 in Urmia Prison, and his burial place remained hidden.

About this list

The list of security and political executions is not complete. The real number is higher, and the names of many never reached the outside world; we record only a name for which we have found a source. Most names on this page come from the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center with 162 cases; followed by HRANA with 113, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network and iranintl.com with 91 each, and Iran International with 72 cases. Every name has at least one source, but some rest on only one report. For 119 people a description of their life is available. If you knew one of these 250 people, or if the charge given here differs from what was in their case file, send us your memory or correction.