6 men convicted of drug trafficking were hanged on Saturday in a prison in the central city of Isfahan, Iranian state-run television reported.
The unidentified men were part of a drug trafficking gang who used Revolutionary Guards uniforms and forged orders for their drug smuggling operations, said the report on the television's website.
It said more than a ton of narcotics as well as weapons and forged identification cards were confiscated.
The latest hangings bring to at least 9 the number of people executed in Iran so far in 2010, according to an AFP count based on news reports.
Iran hanged at least 270 people in 2009 and in 2008 executed 246 people, the highest number in any country bar China.
Tehran says the death penalty is necessary for maintaining public security and is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.
Murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking, homosexuality, and adultery are all punishable by death in the Islamic republic.
Source: Agence France-Presse, January 9, 2010
Six hanged in Isfahan
Iran Human Rights, January 9: Six people were hanged in the prison of Isfahan (central Iran) early this morning, reported the state run Iranian news agency ISNA.
Quoting Isfahan’s prosecutor, the report said: "Five of these people were members of an organized narcotics smugling league. They used false ID cards and cars with logos belonging to teh revolutionary guards (IRGC) and security forces for drug smugling. The sixth person had previously been jailed for drug trafficking and was this time arrested with 38 kilograms of opium."
The report didn’t mention the gender, identity or age of those executed this morning.
Iran Human Rights underlines that the charges mentioned in the report have not been confirmed but independent sources.
Source: Iran Human Rights, January 9, 2010
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