20-year-old Ilya Khalifehzadeh publicly executed in Bukan

Hengaw – Saturday, July 12, 2025

20-year-old Ilya Khalifehzadeh was publicly executed in front of Bukan Central Prison early Saturday morning.

According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the execution took place at 3:30 a.m. on July 12, 2025. Khalifehzadeh, a resident of Saqqez, had been sentenced to death for the rape of six-year-old Niyan Jalbian (Jabreilpour), a child from Bukan.

Khalifehzadeh was arrested in January 2025 and later sentenced to death in a public trial by Iran’s judiciary.

Three other individuals connected to the case—Keyvan Jalbian (the child’s father), Shahnaz Mahmoudi from Divandareh, and Asrin Khalifehzadeh from Saqqez—were each sentenced to 15 years in prison for their roles in the abuse, torture, and murder of the child.