46 Kurdish Prisoners Executed in Iran During the First Half of 2026

At least 46 Kurdish prisoners were executed in prisons across Iran during the first six months of 2026, of which 36 were carried out in just two months, according to the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights. Kurdish prisoners accounted for 12 percent of all executions carried out in Iran during the period.

Eight of the 48 political and religious prisoners executed in the same period were Kurdish political prisoners, among them Nasser Bakrzadeh and Mehrab Abdollahzadeh from Urmia, Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour from Naqadeh, Ashkan Maleki and Mehrdad Mohammadinia from Qorveh, and Arsalan Sheikhi and Amanj Karavanchi from Sardasht.

The report also records that 290 Kurdish people were killed during the January protests, including 23 children and 24 women, and that six Kurdish people were sentenced to death while 27 others received a combined total of more than 106 years in prison. (Hengaw Organization)