“No to Executions Tuesdays” Campaign Expands to 60 Iranian Prisons in Its 134th Week
Written by
Safora Sadidi Mohammadi
Prisoners in 60 prisons across Iran are taking part in the 134th week of the “No to Executions Tuesdays” campaign, according to a statement issued by the campaign on Tuesday, August 18, 2026.
The statement commemorated the political prisoners killed during Iran’s 1988 massacre of political prisoners, describing the killings as a crime against humanity. It cited former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran Dr. Javaid Rehman, who has characterized the 1988 massacre as a “crime against humanity,” and called for those responsible for ordering and carrying out the killings to eventually face justice.
The campaign said it seeks accountability for the victims of the 1988 massacre as well as for all those executed by the Iranian authorities in subsequent years.
39 Political Prisoners Executed Since the Start of the Year
The statement highlighted the recent execution of Shahram Sadeghi, a political prisoner arrested during the December 2025–January 2026 protests, who was executed in Karaj last week.
Iranian prisoners are marking the 134th week of “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign, now joined by prisoners in 60 prisons across Iran.
Their weekly hunger strike demands an end to executions and the death penalty.#StopExecutionsInIranhttps://t.co/71iscF8fCs— IRAN HRM (@IranHrm) August 18, 2026
It also referred to the recent execution of Mohammad “Cheragh” Afroukhteh in Zahedan. According to the campaign, these two executions bring the number of political prisoners executed since the beginning of 2026 to at least 39.
The campaign warned that the figure represents a serious threat to many other political and non-political prisoners currently facing death sentences.
Call to Tie Relations with Iran to an End to Executions
The statement welcomed a declaration by 32 countries calling for an immediate halt to executions in Iran. The campaign urged those governments to go further by making all diplomatic and commercial relations with the Iranian authorities conditional on a complete end to executions.
“We, the members of the ‘No to Executions Tuesdays’ campaign, call on all these countries to condition all their diplomatic and commercial relations with the Iranian regime on the complete cessation of executions,” the statement said.
The campaign also appealed to human rights advocates and the international community to amplify the voices of death-row prisoners and take sustained action to prevent further executions.
The “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign has expanded to 60 prisons across 25 Iranian provinces with the joining of Gachsaran Prison, a powerful sign that resistance against the death penalty grows stronger every day.
Salutes to the prisoners who, sacrificing body and soul, give…— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) August 18, 2026
Gachsaran Prison Joins the Campaign
The campaign announced that a group of prisoners at Gachsaran Prison had formally declared their participation, bringing the number of participating facilities to 60.
The prisoners are staging a hunger strike on Tuesday as part of the campaign’s 134th consecutive week. Participating facilities include Evin Prison in Tehran, Ghezel Hesar Prison, Karaj Central Prison, Greater Tehran Prison, Adelabad Prison in Shiraz, Sepidar Prison in Ahvaz, Zahedan Prison, Mashhad Prison, Urmia Prison, Sanandaj Prison, and prisons in numerous other cities across the country.
The campaign said the expansion of the weekly hunger strike demonstrates continued opposition inside Iran’s prisons to the use of capital punishment.
It called on governments, human rights organizations and the international community to take effective measures to stop executions and protect prisoners facing death sentences.