Iran is witnessing a rise in executions and arrests with political, security-related and ideological backgrounds, according to rights reports, amid an economic crisis, a decline in the value of the rial, and the repercussions of war and external pressure.
The latest reported arrest campaigns have focused on Ahvaz and the village of Aboudeh, where a rights organisation said security forces had detained at least 18 Sunni Arab citizens in recent days. Rights and UN reports indicate that dozens of people accused in connection with protests have been executed, while others still face death sentences.
These developments coincide with tighter security measures in several areas, including Ahvaz, Kurdistan and Baluchistan, amid fears that protests could return and expand as economic and social pressures persist.
In Ahvaz, officially known as Khuzestan, executions have coincided with the arrests of Sunni Arab citizens, giving the campaign, according to rights reports, ethnic and religious dimensions alongside its security background. The reports said dozens of people had been arrested in recent months, before the announcement of at least 18 arrests in the latest campaign.
Iranian affairs analyst Aref Nasr said the executions carried out by the authorities represented a deterrent message, arguing that the pre-emptive and widespread arrests of Sunni Arabs in Ahvaz were aimed at preventing new protest hotspots from forming because of what he described as political, religious and economic tension in the area.
Nasr added that events in Iran could be viewed as a dual security policy based on using executions to deter the public and arrests to prevent protests before they develop into a broad movement. The analysis comes amid rising social and political discontent reported by rights organisations, alongside the continuing deterioration of economic conditions.
Rights report documents rise in death sentences
In its latest report, the Iran Human Rights Organisation said the Iranian authorities had carried out at least 2,657 executions inside Iranian prisons during 2026. According to its figures, this was more than double the number of executions announced in the previous year, which stood at 1,159.
The organisation said its review of executions carried out during the Iranian solar year 1404, which it cited as 2026, showed one of the highest execution rates in the past three decades. It said the reported number had more than doubled compared with the previous year. The report linked the rise to an increase in the executions of women, political prisoners and those the organisation described as “delinquent children”.
The organisation also said the actual number was likely higher than the reported total, pointing to the possibility that some executions had been carried out secretly, which it regarded as a further indication of the increased use of the punishment during the year.
The organisation said that, according to its analysis, the execution of political prisoners could be understood as part of what it described as a “policy of repression and the creation of an atmosphere of terror and fear” in society. It added that, as social and political discontent widened, the issuing and carrying out of such sentences could be seen as a warning to society, particularly those who might take part in potential protests.
Arrests target Arab citizens in Ahvaz
In parallel, the Karun Organisation for Human Rights said Iranian security forces had arrested at least 18 Sunni Arab citizens in recent days in areas of Ahvaz and in Aboudeh village, located on the road between Hamidiyeh and Ahvaz. It said some of those arrested were associated, according to its description, with religious activities or beliefs.
According to the organisation’s report, forces affiliated with the Intelligence Organisation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps raided Aboudeh village last Thursday and arrested at least 10 Arab citizens, then transferred them to an undisclosed location. It added that the detainees had been visiting a friend at his home when it was raided.
The organisation identified nine of those detained in Aboudeh village as Mustafa Jaldawi, Kamal Batrani, Luqman Batrani, Hadi Beit Sheikh Ahmad, known as “Abu Kamal”, Reza Sawari, Khaled Gharbawi, Jaafar Jaldawi, Ibrahim Hamdani and Ali Jaldawi. It added that the identity of a tenth detainee was still being verified.
According to the organisation, all those whose identities had been confirmed were married and supporting their families. It also said the fate and whereabouts of several detainees remained unknown, despite several days having passed since their arrests. In Ahvaz, the Karun Organisation said Majid Sharifi, also known as Majid Sawari, 44, remained detained at a facility belonging to the Intelligence Department.
It said he had previously been arrested and imprisoned over what it described as ideological activities linked to his adherence to Sunni Islam. The organisation added that Sharifi suffered from kidney failure, raising concerns among his family and relatives about his health while in detention. It quoted sources close to his family as expressing fears that he could be subjected to ill-treatment or pressure during his detention.
The organisation said several detainees in the same case had been transferred to the quarantine section of Sheiban Prison in Ahvaz. Among them was Arkan Sharifi, the son of Majid Sharifi, who was 17. In another incident connected to the same campaign, the report said Intelligence Department forces raided a site linked to an activist in Ahvaz’s Moshali district and arrested eight Arab citizens.
The organisation identified them as Radi Heydari, 50, Hussein Heydari, 29, Abdulhadi Asakereh, 30, Majid Sharifi, 44, Arkan Sharifi, 17, Lafta Heydari, 36, Hamzeh Sayyahi, 34, and Mohammad Sawari.
The Karun Organisation said, based on the information it had received, that security forces entered the detainees’ homes without presenting a judicial warrant. It added that security personnel searched the homes and confiscated mobile phones during the arrests. The organisation expressed concern about the detainees’ legal and health conditions, particularly those who were ill, family breadwinners and the 17-year-old detainee.
Rights organisation calls for detainees’ whereabouts to be disclosed
It called on the authorities to immediately disclose the places where all the detainees were being held, enable them to contact their families and lawyers, provide patients with necessary medical care and medicines, and respect their legal and human rights.
