Resumption of Executions of Prisoners Convicted of Drug Offences in Qezel Hesar; Two Prisoners Executed

Breathing in Confinement, Sunday, 27 September 2026: The death sentences of at least two prisoners, who had previously been arrested on charges related to “drug offences,” were carried out in Qezel Hesar Prison.

According to Breathing in Confinement, the news outlet of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, two prisoners were hanged in Qezel Hesar Prison in the early hours of Sunday, 27 September. The prisoners have been identified by Breathing in Confinement as Hossein Jafari and Milad Zeinali.

According to the report, Hossein Jafari, a resident of Nurabad, had previously been arrested on charges related to “drug offences” and sentenced to death. In a separate case, Milad Zeinali, a 28-year-old resident of Kuhdasht, was arrested 10 years ago on charges related to “drug offences” and was subsequently sentenced to death by the judiciary.

Their death sentences were carried out at dawn on Sunday, 27 September, in Qezel Hesar Prison.

Resumption of Executions in Qezel Hesar Prison

These executions were carried out despite an earlier agreement by judicial authorities to suspend the execution of prisoners sentenced to death in drug-related cases, pending a review of the relevant laws and individual cases. The agreement followed a strike by death-row prisoners convicted in drug-related cases at Qezel Hesar Prison on Tuesday, 28 July 2026.

With the executions of Hossein Jafari and Milad Zeinali on 27 September, executions at Qezel Hesar Prison have resumed, raising further concerns about the continuation and potential increase in the use of the death penalty, particularly in drug-related cases.

No Official Announcement by State Sources

At the time of publication of this report, no official source had announced the execution of these prisoners.

Annual Report on Executions in Iran

According to the annual report of the Statistics Centre of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, at least 2,616 people were executed in Iran during the Iranian year 1404. Of these, 12 were executed in public. The executions also included 67 women and eight juvenile offenders.