At dawn on Wednesday, December 24, 2025, the death sentence of a female prisoner identified as Zahra Khanzadeh was carried out in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad.
Zahra Khanzadeh had been sentenced to death on drug-related charges.
As of the time of this report, the execution of Zahra Khanzadeh has not been covered by state-run media, particularly outlets affiliated with Iran’s judiciary.
With the execution of Zahra Khanzadeh in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, the number of women executed in Iran in 2025 has reached 64, marking at least an 88% increase compared to 2024.
Iran, the world record holder in executing women
According to data recorded by the Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, at least 327 women have been executed in Iran since 2007.
Over the past month, from November 22 to December 21 (the Iranian month of Azar), the clerical regime executed a staggering 357 prisoners, including eight women, in 64 cities across 31 provinces.
Many of the women executed by the Iranian regime are themselves victims of domestic violence and discriminatory family laws. A significant number have acted in self-defense.
Since Masoud Pezeshkian took office, the clerical regime has executed over 2,800 prisoners. The number of executions registered in 2025, so far, has exceeded the unprecedented number of 2,000.
The Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran once again calls on the United Nations and relevant agencies, the European Union and its member states, as well as all human rights defenders, to take immediate action to save the lives of death-row prisoners and to halt the rampant executions in Iran.
