A human rights group has warned about a disturbing trend in Iran's judiciary system, reporting a significant surge in issuing death penalties during January.

According to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Iranian courts issued 35 death sentences, marking the highest number of death penalties issued within a single month in over a year. Meanwhile, a total of 86 people were executed across the country during January alone.

The surge comes on the heels of a similarly grim situation in January 2023, during which at least 63 people were executed in Iran, with 23 death sentences issued.

Despite mounting international calls for the abolition of the death penalty, particularly for non-serious crimes, Iran persists in carrying out executions. HRANA contends that the Iranian government utilizes the issuance and implementation of death sentences as a means to quell dissent. Notably, Mohammad Ghobadloo, a protester detained during the 2022 uprising, was among those executed in January 2024.

The concluding section of the report emphasizes the Islamic Republic's response to global demands for upholding human rights standards. It calls for judges, interrogators, and members of security forces involved in violating the standards to face recognition of their responsibility through international sanctions.

A recent Amnesty International report further underscored the severity of the situation, revealing that from January 1, 2012, to July 31, 2023, over five thousand individuals, including at least 57 children, were executed in Iran.