“THE SMILING FACE OF THE MULLAHS”: HOC report on the Death Penalty in Iran

In view of the visit to Italy by President Hassan Rouhani, scheduled for the 25th and 26th of January, Hands Off Cain presented the Report on the Death Penalty in Iran entitled “The Smiling Face of the Mullahs”.

The Report lists the executions carried out in Iran in 2015 and in first two weeks of 2016 and provides a comprehensive view of capital punishment under Hassan Rouhani's Presidency.

The report also represents a “reminder” for the Italian State's highest authorities to bring the question of the death penalty and the respect of human rights to the center of every meeting and understanding with the representatives of the regime in Tehran.

According to the report, in 2015 the regime in Tehran carried out at least 980 executions, a 22.5% increase compared to 800 in 2014 and a 42.6% increase compared to 687 in 2013.

This is the number of executions among the highest in the recent history of Iran, which classifies it as the top “Executioner-Country” in the world in relation to population. At least 370 execution cases (37.7%) were reported by official Iranian sources (websites of the Iranian Judiciary, national Iranian broadcasting network, and official or state-run news agencies and newspapers); 610 cases (62.3%) included in the annual numbers were reported by unofficial sources (other human rights NGOs or sources inside Iran).

The actual number of executions is probably much higher than the figures included in the Report of Hands Off Cain.