Shabtabnews In this dark night, I have lost my way – Arise from a corner, oh you the star of guidance.
Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO) – Fazl Ahmad Fatehnia, a Baluch man on death row for murder, was executed in Zahedan Central Prison.
According to Haal Vsh, a Baluch man was executed in Zahedan Central Prison on 31 July. His identity has been reported as 30-year-old Fazl Ahmad Fatehnia (Zarakzehi) from the Shirabad region of Zahedan.
Per the report, he was arrested for the murder of his father in Zahak city around two years ago and transferred to Zabol. The Zabol Criminal Court sentenced him to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder. He was transferred to the pre-execution solitary confinement cells the night prior to his execution.
At the time of writing, his execution has not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.
Those charged with the umbrella term of “intentional murder” are sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) regardless of intent or circumstances due to a lack of grading in law. Once a defendant has been convicted, the victim’s family are required to choose between death as retribution, diya (blood money) or forgiveness. Crucially, while an indicative amount is set by the Judiciary every year, there is no legal limit to how much can be demanded by families of the victims. IHRNGO has recorded many cases where defendants are executed because they cannot afford to pay the blood money.
In 2023, at least 282 people including two juvenile offenders and 15 women, were executed for murder charges, the second highest number of qisas executions since 2010. Only 20% of the recorded qisas executions were announced by official sources. In 2023, Iran Human Rights also recorded 857 cases of families choosing diya or forgiveness instead of qisas executions.
