Iran executes 7 for rape, drug charges: Rights group

ANKARA (AA) – Iran has executed seven people convicted of rape and drug trafficking, according to a Norway-based rights group on Wednesday.

In a statement, Iran Human Rights (IHR) said four people were hanged in the Rajai Shahr prison for rape charges and three others were executed for drug-related crimes in Ghazal Hesar prison in the northern city of Karaj.

According to rights groups, executions surged in Iran by 75% in 2022.

IHR and the Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty estimate that 582 executions were carried out in Iran in 2022, the highest in Iran since 2015, up from 333 in 2021.

On Tuesday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called on Iranian authorities to abolish the death penalty and halt all executions.

“On average so far this year, over 10 people are put to death each week in Iran, making it one the world’s highest executors,” he said.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi