Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran
A/71/418 para 81
Full recommendation
Continues to urge the authorities to consider examining the views they have shared about the
root causes of drug abuse and crime in the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as their views about
the deterrent effects of the country’s drug policies.
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran generally considers drug-trafficking a serious
offence requiring the death penalty under certain circumstances and claims its anti-narcotic
regulations and heavy sentences act as effective deterrents.2 However, the Government reviewed
its anti-narcotic law and amended it in 2017, notably reducing the number of crimes that can be
sentenced with the death penalty.
Between 2010 and 2017, 3,224 individuals were reportedly executed for drug-related crimes.3
According to Iranian officials, between 70% and 80% of executions per year were related to drug
offences.4 The high rate of executions can be attributed to the previous anti-narcotic law, which
permitted the death penalty for a wide range of crimes. For example, under Article 4 of the
previous version of the law, a person carrying 5 kg or more of narcotics could be sentenced to
death.
In November 2017, an amendment made to the law on drug trafficking entered into force,
replacing the mandatory death penalty with a prison term of up to 30 years for non-violent drugrelated offences and increasing the quantity of drugs required for a death sentence to be imposed.
The amendment significantly reduced the number of death penalties issued for drug-related
crimes since 2017.5 However, mandatory death sentences for numerous drug-related offences
remain and the law transformed a number of crimes into capital crimes for first-time offenders in
specific circumstances. 6 At least 30 people were executed on drug-related charges in 2019 and
25 in 2020.7 On May 3, Iran Human Rights reported that during the first four months of 2021, 22
1
CCPR.6.1.S.1; CCPR.6.1.O.1; CCPR.6.2.O.3
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, September 2016,
https://undocs.org/Home/Mobile?FinalSymbol=A%2F71%2F418&Language=E&DeviceType=Desktop.
3
ECPM, Iran Human Rights, https://www.ecpm.org/wp-content/uploads/Rapport-iran-2020-gb-070420-WEB.pdf
4
The statement was made in 2014 and continued until 2017: < https://www.mashreghnews.ir/news/305059/ >
5
ECPM, Iran Human Rights, https://www.ecpm.org/wp-content/uploads/Rapport-iran-2020-gb-070420-WEB.pdf
6
Drug trafficking law, articles 8 and 45.
7
https://iranhr.net/media/files/Rapport_iran_2021-gb-290321-BD.pdf
2
1