Kurdish prisoner Payam Pakzad executed in Zanjan Central Prison

Hengaw – Thursday, August 13, 2026

Payam Pakzad, a 41-year-old Kurdish prisoner from Bojnord who had previously been sentenced to death under qisas (retribution-in-kind) for “premeditated murder,” has been executed in Zanjan Central Prison.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Pakzad’s execution was carried out at dawn on Saturday, August 8, 2026, in Zanjan Central Prison.

Informed sources told Hengaw that Pakzad was a father of four. He was arrested three years ago while working on a construction project, following the killing of a person at his workplace. The Iranian judiciary subsequently sentenced him to death.

His execution has not been announced by Iran’s state media or judiciary-affiliated sources.