UN rights chief says Iran executed at least 56 people since March

What the report says

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said Iran has executed at least 56 people since March 19 on national security-related charges, including 27 cases tied to protests earlier in the year. In a statement reported by Al Jazeera and Reuters on Wednesday, Turk said the pace of executions appears aimed at instilling fear and discouraging dissent. He called on Iranian authorities to stop the executions and move toward abolishing the death penalty.

The UN Human Rights Office said more than 100 other people may also face execution on similar security charges, while drug-related executions continue at a high rate. The office raised concerns about the lack of fair-trial protections, the speed and secrecy of proceedings, and reports that some confessions were obtained under torture or ill-treatment. It said some death sentences were issued after very brief closed-door hearings, and that several executions happened only weeks after arrests.

Al Jazeera also cited Amnesty International, which said in July that the executions are part of a wider crackdown following a major uprising. That unrest began in late December and January after economic hardship linked to a falling rial and rising prices, and it developed into anti-government protests demanding reform. Iranian officials have rejected UN criticism and say capital punishment is lawful under national and religious rules.