1,500 Death Row Inmates in Iran Launch Hunger Strike
At least 1,500 death row inmates at Iran's Ghezel Hesar prison have been on a two-week hunger strike to protest a surge in executions. Some prisoners have sewn their lips shut, demanding international intervention against the regime's brutal crackdown.
At least 1,500 death row inmates held in Iran's largest prison have been on a hunger strike for two weeks in protest against the surge in executions under the increasingly repressive regime of the Ayatollahs, with some even sewing their lips shut in protest. This is reported by human rights organizations monitoring events in the Islamic Republic.
The mass hunger strike at the Ghezel Hesar prison near Tehran began on July 13, after six prisoners sentenced to death for drug offenses were transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for their possible execution. In footage distributed by human rights organizations from inside the prison, inmates are seen sitting in a corridor holding protest signs reading "No more executions" and chanting: "Be our voice!".
The British "Guardian" reported on a graphic video in which one prisoner is seen using a needle and thread to sew his lips shut, as no prison official had responded to the protest six days into the hunger strike. In a third video, a prisoner is heard calling for urgent medical help for those whose condition has deteriorated, stating: "The guards won't open the door so we can take them to the prison clinic."
In a message passed to the "Guardian", one of those sentenced to death for drug offenses said: "We are prisoners who made such mistakes only to pay for the most basic needs, and we regret our actions from the bottom of our hearts. Where else in the world do they take human lives because of one mistake?".
A similar protest took place at Ghezel Hesar in October 2025, ending only after senior officials promised to temporarily halt executions and re-examine cases—promises that activists claim were never fulfilled.
The regime in Iran makes massive use of the death penalty as part of its campaign of repression. Last year, according to human rights organizations, a record of at least 1,639 executions was reached—the highest figure since 1989. According to the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), at least 424 people have been executed since the beginning of this year. Despite threats from US President Donald Trump to punish Iran for these executions, the campaign has intensified. A source in Tehran noted that the intensity of executions has actually increased since the ceasefire, stating: "Every time the shadow of war over the regime fades even slightly, the regime becomes more cruel."
Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, head of IHRNGO, told the "Guardian" that those sentenced for drug offenses are often low-level couriers from the weakest layers of society, frequently convicted based on confessions extracted under torture. "By holding this protest, the prisoners are taking an extraordinary risk, hoping that the international community will finally listen and increase the political cost of the executions," he said.
