Three men were hanged in Iran on Sunday, executed for “unlawful” acts of sodomy and homosexual sex.
In an interview with the chief spokesman for the Oslo, Norway-based Iran Human Rights Watch organization, Dr. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam told LGBTQ Nation on Tuesday that his organization has confirmed reports by the state run Iranian news agency ISNA Iran, that six people were hanged in the Karoun prison of Ahvaz (southwest of the Iranian capital city of Tehran) early Sunday morning, Sept. 4th.
Independent knowledgeable sources in Istanbul, Turkey also verified that the claims made by the Iranian state run television agency were correct.
According to the ISNA report, three of the executed men were sentenced to death by the Ahvaz revolution court, convicted of “unlawful” acts and acts against Sharia, based on the articles 108 and 110 of the Iranian Islamic penal code.
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Articles 108 and 110 of the Iranian Islamic Penal code are part of the chapter covering the punishment of “Hadd” for “sodomy”. Article 108 says: “Sodomy (or Lavat) is sexual intercourse between men,” and article 110 says: “punishment for sodomy is killing; the Sharia judge decides on how to carry out the killing.”
The men were identified as: “M. T.”, “T. T.” and “M. Ch.” (no ages were given) and in addition to being convicted of sodomy, were also convicted of the offenses of kidnapping and robbery.
Condemning the executions, Dr. Amiry-Moghaddam, said, “executions for sodomy might be among the rare cases were the Iranian authorities admit to having executed men convicted of homosexual acts.”
“Iranian authorities normally present such cases as rape, but rape as not been mentioned in this case.” Amiry-Moghaddam added, and warned of a new wave of executions scheduled for the coming weeks in Iran.
“After a short break in the executions due to the Holy month of Ramadan, we have received reports about many scheduled executions in the coming days and weeks in Iran,” he said. “Many of the scheduled executions are planned to be carried out publicly.”
Contacted by LGBTQ Nation, a spokesman for the Iranian mission to the United Nations in New York declined to comment on the executions.
