Since April 20, hangings have become a daily occurrence in Iran. In a context of war, the regime intensifies its use of capital punishment to quell any form of dissent. Opponents and participants in the January demonstrations are frequently accused of espionage.
First modification: 04/23/2026 - 07:59 Last modification: 04/23/2026 - 09:26
Every morning, at dawn, the same scene is repeated in Iranian prisons. Since Monday, April 20, at least one man has been hanged every day. A chilling pace that, according to NGOs and experts, reveals a dizzying acceleration of the Islamic Republic's use of the death penalty since the start of the war between the United States, Israel and Iran, on February 28.
This Thursday, April 23, Iran executed Soltanali Shirzadi Fakhr, convicted of collaborating with Mossad and belonging to the opposition group MEK, in the fifth hanging of the week for alleged ties with Israel.
On Wednesday, April 22, authorities announced the execution of Mehdi Farid, 55, convicted of having ties to the Mossad. A former employee of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization, he had been arrested in 2023.
The day before, another man, Amirali Mirjafari, had been hanged, accused of collaborating with Israel and the United States, and of trying to burn down a mosque in Tehran during the January protests. On Monday, two other convicts, presented as members of a spy network, had been executed at dawn.
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"There is an increase in political executions as a result of the war," analyzes Azadeh Kian, professor emeritus of sociology at Paris Cité University. Since the beginning of the conflict, at least 14 political prisoners related to the conflict have been executed.
According to the NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR), Amirali Mirjafari, hanged at dawn on Tuesday, is the eighth prisoner executed in connection with the anti-government demonstrations in January, following summary trials.
"Saleh Mohammadi, Saeed Davodi and Mehdi Ghasemi were hanged in Qom Central Prison on March 19, and Amirhossein Hatami in Ghezel Hesar Prison on April 2. Their co-defendants, Mohammad-Amin Biglari and Shahin Vahedparast, were also executed in Ghezel Hesar Prison on April 5, and Ali Fahim was hanged there on April 6," reports the Norway-based IHR.
For human rights organizations, these cases have less to do with espionage than with political repression.
"The Islamic Republic continues to present internal civil unrest as espionage to accelerate the execution of protesters," denounces IHR. Researcher Azadeh Kian, for her part, refers to summary trials, often held by videoconference, without the accused having real access to a lawyer.
Young people sentenced to death
The profile of those convicted illustrates the magnitude of the repression. These are "very young Iranians, between 20 and 25 years old, detained during the January uprisings, but also older opponents, particularly linked to the People's Mujahideen. They are accused of attacking national security or 'war against God', a charge frequently used by the regime that carries the death penalty," explains the Iran specialist.
"While it took more than a year for the Islamic Republic to execute eight protesters of the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement, the current executions have been carried out in just over three months," highlights IHR.
In early April, the powerful head of Iran's judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, explicitly urged courts to speed up the imposition of death sentences, both in cases related to the foreign conflict and those related to internal protests.
The directive had immediate effects and demonstrates that, despite the war and changes at the top of the regime, the Iranian judicial apparatus has remained intact.
Terrorize the population
At the same time, repression intensifies far beyond executions. According to IHR, at least 3,646 people have been detained since the start of the war, more than 700 of them after the ceasefire was announced on April 8.
On April 20, the Iranian police chief announced the arrest of at least 1,800 more people, accused of "hostile" activities or links to the opposition. Among the people affected are activists, but also ordinary citizens, persecuted for online publications or for their participation in rallies.
The lawyers are not spared either. In recent weeks, several defenders have been arrested, including the famous human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh. In many cases, detainees are held incommunicado, fueling fears of imminent executions.
For Azadeh Kian, this strategy has the main objective of terrorizing the population. "The objective is to intimidate. At the same time, in recent days armed parades of supporters of the regime have been organized to send a clear message to the opponents: 'We have you in our sights'. The power fears that sporadic riots will occur," he explains.
"The economic crisis was already there, and with the war, the destruction, unemployment and inflation, which has risen again, the population is exhausted and paralyzed," he adds.
On the political level, the war has strengthened the most radical factions of the regime and the repressive system of the Islamic Republic continues to function, despite the damage suffered.
"The Islamic Republic has become militarized and most of the power is now in the hands of the most radical," summarizes the researcher, who sees the appointment of General Ahmad Vahidi as head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as an eloquent symbol.
Former head of the intelligence service of the Revolutionary Guards and a central figure in internal repression, he was appointed to this position after the death of Mohammad Pakpour at the beginning of the conflict.
The blind spot of negotiations
In this context, NGOs fear a new wave of executions. Hundreds of protesters are currently being tried for crimes punishable by the death penalty, and at least 30 have already been sentenced to capital punishment, according to IHR, which calls for an immediate moratorium and considers that the issue of executions must be central to any negotiations with Tehran.
On April 21, Donald Trump asked Iranian leaders to "free" several women who, according to him, were threatened with execution.
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"To the Iranian leaders, who will soon negotiate with my representatives: I would be very grateful if you released these women. (...) Please do not harm them! It would be a very good start for negotiations!" wrote the American president on his social network Truth Social.
"Among the women presented as being about to be executed, some have been released, while others are the subject of judicial proceedings that, at most, could lead to a prison sentence," noted the Mizan website, an organ of the Iranian judiciary, for whom "Trump has been deceived once again by false information."
Masih Alinejad, an Iranian opposition member living in the United States, published in X eight names of women, all of them detained, according to her, in connection with the bloody repressed January demonstrations.
One of them is Bita Hemmati, sentenced to capital punishment for having thrown concrete blocks from a building at security forces during demonstrations, according to several human rights organizations.
In a report published in mid-April, the NGO Hengaw, based in Norway, released an image of Bita Hemmati identical to one of the eight photographs shared by Donald Trump.
According to the organization, another of these photographs shows Mahboubeh Shabani, 32, sentenced to death for "having declared war on God" after transporting injured protesters on her motorcycle in Mashhad, a northeastern city where she is currently imprisoned.
According to human rights organizations, in 2025 Iran ranked second in the world in terms of the number of executions - behind China - with at least 1,639 people executed, including 48 women. This is already a record in more than twenty years.
Adapted from its original French version
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