Iranian authorities executed four individuals on Wednesday for selling contaminated bootleg alcohol that led to the poisoning deaths of 17 people in 2022, according to the judiciary. The executions took place at Karaj central prison, following the September 2023 sentencing of the four defendants. The poisonous alcohol also hospitalized over 190 people in the Alborz province, west of Tehran.
Iran, which banned alcohol after the 1979 Islamic revolution, has a black market for bootleg alcohol, often leading to toxic methanol contamination. This latest case is part of a growing problem, with recent reports of similar incidents causing around 40 deaths in northern Iran.
While alcohol is strictly prohibited for the general population, only recognized Christian minorities, such as Armenians, are allowed to produce and consume it privately. Iran remains one of the countries with the highest execution rates, following China, according to human rights organizations like Amnesty International.
