United Nations human rights experts have expressed deep concern over a significant increase in executions within Iran. They report that more than 1,000 people have been executed in the first nine months of 2025, a number that already surpasses the total for the previous year. The experts described this situation as a “staggering” and grave violation of the right to life.
A significant portion, around half, of these executions are reportedly for drug-related offenses. Recent weeks have seen an average of nine hangings per day documented.
The Iranian government has not yet issued an official statement but has previously defended its use of capital punishment, stating it is reserved for the most serious crimes.
This surge in executions comes as Iran announced the execution of a man accused of spying for Israel. The judiciary identified him as Bahman Choubi Asl, a database expert allegedly working on sensitive telecommunications projects for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. He was executed after his appeal was rejected.
Asl is reportedly the eleventh individual convicted of espionage for Israel to be executed in Iran this year, with ten of these occurring after the conflict between the two nations in June.
Amnesty International and Iran Human Rights have also highlighted the high number of drug-related executions, with over 500 individuals currently on death row for such offenses. Both organizations have raised concerns about the fairness of trials, citing allegations of torture and mistreatment.
The UN experts emphasized that drug offenses do not meet the threshold for capital punishment under international law and urged global action to press Iran to halt these executions.