Iran has executed 23-year-old Marzieh Niri, who said she killed a man in self-defense while he was attempting to sexually assault her. The execution of a woman in Iran took place early Saturday morning at the central prison in Qazvin.
According to Iran Human Rights, Niri had been forced into marriage at the age of 17 under pressure from her family. The incident that ultimately led to her death sentence occurred in October 2021, when she was 18.
Court Rejected Her Self-Defense Claim
During her trial, Niri said one of her husband’s business partners had tried to attack her while intoxicated. She said she wounded him with a kitchen knife while defending herself, while her husband was also killed during the same confrontation.
Four days after the incident, Niri turned herself in to police after previously seeking shelter with her brother. The court rejected her claim that she had acted in self-defense.
The families of the victims requested the application of qisas, a principle of retributive punishment under Iran’s legal system. As a result, Niri was sentenced to death.
Under qisas, the family of a murder victim can demand the execution of the convicted person or accept financial compensation known as diya. In such cases, Iranian courts can carry out the death sentence with the explicit consent of the victim’s closest relative.
Executions of Women Continue to Rise
According to Iran Human Rights, Niri is at least the 14th woman executed in Iran since the beginning of 2026. At least 61 women were executed in the country during 2025, the highest number recorded in the past 25 years and approximately 70% more than in the previous year.
At least 21 women executed last year had been sentenced under qisas for killing their husbands or fiancés. Women’s rights groups cited in the reports say many women facing such sentences had previously experienced years of domestic violence, while forced early marriages, economic dependence, limited access to divorce and weak legal protection can make it difficult to leave abusive relationships.
In a separate case announced the same day, Iranian authorities said Kolthum Akbari had received ten death sentences under qisas for ten murders. The investigation began in 2023 following the death of an 82-year-old man several months after he entered a temporary marriage with her.
The investigation later uncovered several similar cases. Akbari admitted killing several elderly men, most of whom she had drawn into temporary marriages, while the family of another victim chose financial compensation instead of demanding her execution.
Human rights organizations recorded at least 1,639 executions in Iran during 2025, the highest annual figure since 1989. According to the reports, only 17 countries carried out executions that year, with Iran ranking second behind China.
