Iran is carrying out near-daily executions of prisoners in secrecy, with at least 24 people executed since March, according to the Norway-based monitoring group Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO). Families are often not informed until after the executions, and some face harassment and pressure to remain silent, say rights groups and sources close to the relatives.
An internet blackout imposed more than two months ago has made communication with people inside Iran increasingly difficult. In some cases, authorities have refused to hand over the bodies of the executed to their families, taking them to undisclosed locations, according to Rebin Rahmani, a board member of the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN).
Among those executed recently were Mehrab Abdollahzadeh, a protester from the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom movement, and Nasser Bakerzadeh and Yaghoub Karimpour, both executed on charges of spying for Israel. All three were held in Urmia central prison. In voice notes and letters, they described being subjected to torture and threats against their families before execution.
Iran is believed to have executed at least 1,600 people in 2025, according to a UN special rapporteur report, though most were for drug or murder charges. Rights groups say authorities are using the chaos of war to kill government critics. The recent spike has raised fears for hundreds facing the death penalty over anti-government protests and espionage accusations.
