{"id":20252,"date":"2026-07-28T21:15:07","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T16:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=20252"},"modified":"2026-07-28T21:15:07","modified_gmt":"2026-07-28T16:15:07","slug":"iranian-prisoners-sew-lips-shut-in-hunger-strike-as-executions-surge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=20252","title":{"rendered":"Iranian prisoners sew lips shut in hunger strike as executions surge"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F07%2F135767751.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Prisoners in Iran\u2019s largest jail have sewn their lips shut in defiance of the regime as hundreds take part in a hunger strike over<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/07\/16\/world-news\/iran-hanging-more-and-more-political-prisoners-human-rights-group-warns\/\"> the surge in executions<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Harrowing footage from inside<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/04\/27\/us-news\/defiant-iranian-protesters-sing-in-harrowing-video-before-being-hanged-the-tyrants-throne-shall-shatter\/\"> the Ghezel Hesar jail<\/a>\u00a0captured the hunger strike, now in its 16th day, with several prisoners using needles and thread to stitch each other\u2019s lips together to refuse food no matter what, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jul\/28\/prisoners-iran-largest-jail-sew-lips-shut-hunger-strike-executions-soar\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Guardian reported<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p>The dramatic act was sparked after six men were sentenced to death on drug charges and transferred to solitary confinement on July 13 \u2014 with the regime speeding up executions as some 1,500 people wait <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/05\/14\/world-news\/iran-executes-protesting-dad-denies-family-last-visit-relatives-say\/\">on death row <\/a>inside the prison.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Prisoners in Iran\u2019s Ghezel Hesar jail hold cards that demand executions ends at the notorious prison. <span class=\"credit\">X \/ @IranRights_org<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"embed-wrapper twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udd3414th Day of Ghezel Hesar Prisoners&#8217; Strike: Demands to Reform Drug Offense Execution Laws<\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udd38On the 14th day of their hunger strike, a group of prisoners in Ghezel Hesar issued a new message, once again calling for an immediate halt to executions and the urgent approval of an\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hlXBqX7NA7\">pic.twitter.com\/hlXBqX7NA7<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Abdorrahman Boroumand Center (@IranRights_org) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/IranRights_org\/status\/2081766633572356175?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 27, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The Islamic Republic has carried out 424 executions so far this year, with most of the hangings brought down on drug-related cases, according to the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights NGO (IHRNGO).<\/p>\n<p>The non-profit and other human rights groups have criticized the executions and accused the regime of cracking down on the most marginalized prisoners on death row through harsh punishments and sham trials. <\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Many of those on death row for drug-related cases are low-level couriers who took the jobs to try and escape poverty, the IHRNGO has argued. <\/p>\n<p>The hunger strike serves as the only means for the prisoners to highlight the regime\u2019s cruelty as it also goes after political prisoners and protesters in its latest execution spree, said Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, the director of IHRNGO. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>The prisoners are on day 16 of a hunger strike as Tehran hung another two protesters on Tuesday. <span class=\"credit\">X \/ @IranRights_org<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Some prisoners are going as far as sewing their mouth shut during the hunger strike. <span class=\"credit\">X \/ @IranRights_org<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cBy staging this protest, the prisoners in Ghezel Hesar are taking an extraordinary risk,\u201d he said in a statement. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey know that the authorities can execute them at any moment, yet they have chosen to raise their voices in the hope that the international community will finally hear them and increase the political cost of these executions,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>Iran has hanged at least 26 people linked with the January protests, with<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/07\/28\/world-news\/iran-hangs-2-men-convicted-of-killing-4-police-officers-in-january-protests\/\"> the latest two killed on Tuesday<\/a> after being convicted of killing four police officers during the demonstrations and \u201cwaging war against God.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Protesters in Washington held a demonstration in solidarity with the latest political prisoners killed in Iran.  <span class=\"credit\">REUTERS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Many executions take place on Tuesday, leading to the regular \u201cNo Execution Tuesday\u201d protests happening in Tehran\u2019s prisons. <\/p>\n<p>The United Nations\u2019 Human Rights Office warns that eight other young men are at immediate risk of execution over the death of security forces in Isfahan\u2019s Shahid Alikhani Square. <\/p>\n<p>UN experts are calling for a moratorium on executions and for the Islamic Republic to put guarantees in place for fair trials and to limit the death penalty to only \u201cthe most serious crimes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cExecutions only add to the violence and grief Iranians have endured,\u201d the experts said in a statement.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prisoners in Iran\u2019s largest jail have sewn their lips shut in defiance of the regime as hundreds take part in a hunger strike over the surge in executions. Harrowing footage from inside the Ghezel Hesar jail\u00a0captured the hunger strike, now in its 16th day, with several prisoners using needles and thread to stitch each other\u2019s&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/135767751.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20252"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20252\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}