Supporters of People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran protest outside Stockholm District Court on the first day of the trial of Hamid Noury, 60, accused of involvement in the massacre of political prisoners in Iran in 1988, Stockholm, Sweden August 10, 2021. Stefan Jerrevang/TT News Agency/via REUTERS

i24 News – Iran executed at least 280 people last year, according to figures published on Thursday by the UN special rapporteur on Iran.

Presenting a report to the UN Human Rights Council, Javaid Rehman said the number of executions for charges related to narcotics laws rose.

“In 2021, at least 280 individuals, including at least 10 women, were executed,” he said.

Rehman said he was also informed that three “child offenders” — the term the United Nations uses for a person convicted of a crime committed when they were under the age of 18 — were executed in 2021.

The number of women executed also rose, according to the independent expert.

More than 80 of the executions, including that of a woman and at least four Afghans, were for drugs offenses, compared to 25 in 2020, the report added.

Rehman observed that last year saw an increase in executions of people from minority communities, with more than 40 Baluch and over 50 Kurds put to death.

In his report, the special rapporteur indicated that he continued to receive consistent information on the use of confessions obtained by torture as evidence to carry out the death penalty.

Rehman also condemned “lethal and excessive force” against peaceful gatherings over access to water and the impact of water shortages on daily life.

He further rebuked the practice of “attempting to silence those who call for accountability.”

“There are many cases of harassment and threats against families of victims and others calling for justice … In some cases, individuals are subjected to criminal prosecution simply for having called for justice,” he said.