Iran's supreme court has given a death penalty to a man, 27, and his lover, 33 over adultery. The married man and his lover will be punished after the man's father-in-law wanted them to die.
Wife of the Man Urged for Clemency but Her Father Insisted on Execution
According to media reports, the man's wife allegedly provided video clips of her husband's infidelity to the police early this year. Despite complaining about her husband, she also appealed in the court that her better half and his mistress should not be given the death penalty.
The wife's father stepped in and demanded the pair be executed. As reported by Shargh Daily, the court gave the verdict in favor of the wife's father.
Adultery is a Capital Crime in Iran
Adultery is considered as a "crime against God" for both men and women under Iran's penal code. It is treated as a capital crime, following the interpretation of Sharia law adopted after the country's Islamic revolution in 1979. Adultery is punishable by 100 lashes for unmarried men and women, but married offenders are sentenced to death by stoning. However, the middle eastern country altered this in 2013 and judges can now order another method of execution, usually hanging.
Cases of adultery must be proven either by a repeated confession by the defendant or by the testimony of witnesses – four men or three men and two women.
If a victim's family forgives the accused in a capital crime, the accused can be either pardoned or given a jail sentence, according to Iran's form of Sharia law.
At present, it is not yet clear what form of execution the court ordered in the latest case.
Iran Executed 246 People in 2020 Under Sharia Law
Iran carried out 246 executions in the year 2020, including one in public, according to human rights group Amnesty International. It gave no breakdown of the number carried out for adultery.
Between 1979 and 2002, 40 to 76 adultery/incest executions (by stoning) were recorded for both men and women. 8 men were reportedly stoned to death and one woman was hanged after 2002.
