Activists accuse Iran of using the death penalty as a means to instil fear. (Representational)
Paris: Iran hanged a 26-year-old man for a second time Wednesday months after a previous execution was halted half a minute in, an NGO said.
Ahmad Alizadeh was arrested in October 2018 on a murder charge, which he denied, and was sentenced to death, Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR), which tracks executions in Iran, said in a statement.
His death sentence was carried out on April 27 in Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj outside Tehran. But just 28 seconds into the hanging he was brought down from the gallows when the victim’s family suddenly shouted “forgiveness”. His “lifeless” body was successfully resuscitated and the execution was halted, IHR said.
Under Iran’s sharia law, a victim’s family can ask for blood money to spare the life of the perpetrator or also decide to forgive. However, in many cases, the family of the condemned person cannot afford the sum set and the execution goes ahead, according to activists.
Alizadeh remained under the threat of the death penalty in the absence of any deal with the victim’s family for blood money.Â
He was executed again in the Ghezel Hesar prison on Wednesday morning, IHR said.
“Ahmad Alizadeh, a talented student, was hanged for the second time on charges of murder, which he denied and claimed he confessed to under torture,” said IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, denouncing the “execution machine of the Iranian regime”.
Activists accuse Iran of using the death penalty as a means to instil fear throughout society, particularly in the wake of the 2022-2023 nationwide protests which shook the Islamic authorities.
According to IHR, 2024 is seeing a new surge in executions, with at least 166 executions recorded in October alone, the highest number recorded in a single month since the group began documenting executions in 2007.
Activists including Amnesty International say Iran carries out more annual executions than any country other than China, for which no reliable figures are available.Â
Continuing the achievement of the journey of effectiveness and credibility of more than 10 years in the career of journalism, as a woman journalist, I am Serving as the founder, promoter and editor of DiaryTimes with the trust and support of all. My credible coverage may not have given a big shape to the numbers, but my journey presents articles that make you aware of the exact and meaningful situations of Himachal’s politics, ground issues related to the public, business, tourism and the difficult geographical conditions of the state and financial awareness. DiaryTimes, full of the experience of my precise editorial expertise, is awakening the flame of credible journalism among all of you, so that the eternal flame of meaningful change can be lit in the life of the people of the state and the atrocities being committed against the people can be brought to the fore, I am motivated for that. If even a small change comes with the power of my journalism and the whole world becomes a witness to that issues, then I will consider myself fortunate.
