On November 26, prisoners involved in the “No Execution Tuesdays” campaign across 25 Iranian prisons marked their 44th week of a hunger strike. In a joint statement, they condemned the recent surge in executions—over 140 in the past month—asserting that the Iranian regime uses executions as a political tool to instill fear and suppress dissent.
Nationwide Participation in the Campaign
The hunger strike spans prisons in cities including Arak, Ardabil, Urmia, Asadabad, Isfahan, Evin (women’s ward and wards four and eight), Baneh, Bam, Tabriz, Fashafouyeh, Khorramabad, Khoy, Rasht, Saqqez, Salmas, Shiban Ahvaz, Qaem Shahr, Qezel Hesar, Kamyaran, Kahnuj, Karaj, Marivan, Mashhad, Nizam Shiraz, and Naqdeh. Participants emphasize that Iran’s deepening socioeconomic crisis, coupled with the government’s inability to provide solutions, has led to a sharp increase in executions as a means to suppress potential protests.
Highlighting Human Rights Violations
The campaign spotlighted the cases of two political prisoners, Mehran Hassanzadeh and Hamid Abdollahzadeh, who were recently sentenced to death. The announcement coincided with the United Nations General Assembly’s 71st resolution condemning Iran’s grave human rights violations. Campaign members also raised concerns about the fate of four Arab political prisoners—Adnan Ghobishavi, Moeen Ghanfari, Ali Mojdam, and Mohammad Reza Moghadam—who were transferred to solitary confinement 40 days ago, with no information about their current status.
In their statement, the prisoners called for “unity of action and collective solidarity” to halt the regime’s “killing machine.” They denounced the systemic use of executions and unfair trials as gross violations of human rights, urging global institutions, human rights organizations, and activists to intensify efforts to save prisoners on death row.
Surge in Executions
The hunger strike follows a particularly deadly period in Iran. On November 25 alone, at least 10 individuals, including a woman, were executed across various cities. Among them were three prisoners in Karaj’s Central Penitentiary—Ashkan Moradi, Jalal Hajbabai, and Davoud Heydari—convicted on drug-related charges.
Other executions reported by human rights sources included:
- Jiroft Prison: Nader Ghanizadeh (convicted of intentional murder) and Naser Salmani (age 62, drug-related charges). Fifty-eight other prisoners in this facility are also at imminent risk of execution.
- Hamadan Central Prison: Three prisoners, including 42-year-old Maysam Nouri and Arsalan Habibi, were executed for drug-related offenses.
- Kermanshah Central Prison: Mostafa Suri, from Kangavar, executed for intentional murder.
- Parsylon Prison, Khorramabad: Fariba Maleki, a female prisoner, was executed on November 24 for murder charges.
Calls for Global Action
The “No Execution Tuesdays” campaign continues to urge international organizations and civil society to take decisive action against the alarming rise in executions. The prisoners stress that coordinated global pressure is essential to saving the lives of those on death row and ending the regime’s reliance on capital punishment as a tool of repression.
As Iran’s execution crisis deepens, the campaign remains steadfast in its warning against the normalization of this practice. Their message is clear: only through collective solidarity can the international community confront the Iranian regime’s systematic violation of human rights and stop the ongoing wave of state-sanctioned killings.
Source: Iran News Update