Executions in Iran appear to be surging since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war, according to human rights organizations.
Earlier this year, Iran Human Rights released its annual report, which concluded that 2025 was one of Iran's deadliest, with executions within the theocratic dictatorship rising from 975 in 2024 to at least 1,639 last year.
Now, human rights organizations say that since the war, the regime has stepped up its executions again, ABC News reported. According to the network, Iran has executed at least 13 political prisoners since the start of the war in February.
Iran Human Rights reported that nine of those political figures had ties to People's Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK). The latest reported execution was Soltan Ali Shirzadi Fakhr who was sentenced to die related to activities in 1988.
"In addition to these nine political prisoners, eight protesters arrested in relation to the January 2026 protests and two people accused of intelligence espionage for Israel have also been executed since March 18," Iran Human Rights stated.
In January, protests swept across Iran leading to a brutal crackdown by the regime. Estimates of protesters killed by the regime in January have fluctuated between 7,000 and more than 36,000. The killings reportedly happened over the course of a few days.
One of Iran's recent executions was that of Mehdi Farid, who was hanged at an undisclosed location. Farid had been accused of conducting intelligence espionage for Israel. He is one of four individuals executed this year on espionage charges, according to Iran Human Rights.
ABC News reported that, according to human rights activists, charges such as "espionage for Israel and the U.S." and "acting against national security" have been used by the regime in the past to punish dissidents and stifle opposition.
Iran's 1,639 executions in 2025 were the most in the country since 1989 and the most since Iran Human Rights began publishing its annual report on executions. Those executions happened even before nationwide protests in January 2026, the subsequent violent crackdown, and the start of the war in February.
Iran Human Rights reported on Friday that the regime was using a newly enacted "Espionage Bill" to sentence people to die. This week the organization reported that four more protesters arrested in connection with the January 2026 protests were sentenced to death based on the newly enacted bill.
The organization noted that for a time, executions had been paused in Iran during the war. That pause ended on March 18, and since then executions have been on the rise.
