Shahroud, August 27 — A 20-year-old man has been publicly hanged in Iran for the murder of a lawyer, marking the first public execution in the country this year, according to the Norway-based organization Iran Human Rights. The execution took place on Monday in the city of Shahroud, located in the Semnan province of northern Iran.

The young man was executed for the murder of a lawyer, an incident that took place in August 2021. The man reportedly shot and killed the lawyer with a hunting rifle in front of his wife and son in Shahroud. Following an investigation, he was found guilty and sentenced to death by a court. Iran's Judiciary Department's Mizan News Agency confirmed the execution, stating that it was carried out in accordance with the Islamic law of "retribution."

Iran’s official news agency, IRNA, reported that the young man admitted during the investigation that he was hired by a group to carry out the murder. However, further details about the group and their motives were not disclosed by the authorities.

Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam, the director of Iran Human Rights, condemned the execution and called on the international community to publicly denounce Iran’s use of the death penalty. "Public executions are a form of state terror that aims to instill fear in society," Moghaddam stated.

Iran typically carries out executions by hanging within prison walls, especially for crimes related to drug smuggling. According to Iran Human Rights, more than 500 individuals were executed in Iran in 2022 alone.

International human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have repeatedly criticized Iran for its extensive use of the death penalty. Iran is reported to carry out the most executions in the world after China, raising significant concerns about the country's human rights practices.