Iran Focus

Tehran, Iran, Sep. 01 – Iranian authorities have hanged a man in Noshahr, northern Iran, state media reported on Sunday.

Authorities hanged the man in a prison in Noshahr on Saturday, the government-run news agency Fars said.

He was identified only by initials H.P.A.

The report said that he had been convicted of drug trafficking.

Iranian authorities routinely execute dissidents on bogus charges such as armed robbery and drug smuggling.

Executions in Iran have sharply risen over the past two months. At least 63 people were hanged in August, and 29 people were hanged simultaneously in Tehran on 25 July.

In late August, two young men, Behnam Zare and Reza Hejazi, were hanged for crimes they allegedly committed when they were 15 years old. Both were hanged without the knowledge of their lawyers or relatives.

---