Juveniles

Executions of Juveniles Outside of the U.S.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights — one of the three International treaties collectively referred to as the International Bill of Human Rights — mandates that the death penalty “shall not be imposed for crimes committed by persons below eighteen years of age.” Despite that express requirement, a number of countries around the world continue to execute prisoners for crimes they are said to have committed under age eighteen.

Iran is the most prolific executioner of juveniles in the world. The August 2015 Report of the United Nations’ Secretary-General on human rights in Iran expressed ongoing concern “at the frequency of executions, especially for drug-related offences and of juvenile offenders.” The U.N. report said that, while no official data was publicly available, 160 juveniles were reportedly on death row in the country as of 2014. UN Secretary-General, Report to the General Assembly, Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, A/70/352, p.30 (August 31, 2015). Amnesty International recorded 73 executions of juvenile offenders by Iran between January 2005 and November 2015, and believes “[t]he real number is likely to be much higher as many death penalty cases are believed to go unreported.” None of the 73 juvenile executions recorded by Amnesty was officially announced by the Iranian government. Amnesty International, Growing Up on Death Row: The Death Penalty and Juvenile Offenders in Iran, p.28 (2016).

Iran, however, is not the only country in which juveniles are executed. Amnesty International reports that military tribunals in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region continue to carry out executions of children. Five boys, all between ages 14 and 17, were executed on April 8, 2017 for their alleged involvement in the armed group Al-Shabaab’s killing of three senior government officials. Michelle Kagari, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes, said “These five boys were executed following a fundamentally flawed process during which they were tortured to confess, denied access to a lawyer and additional protections accorded to juveniles, and tried in a military tribunal.” At the time, Amnesty called on Puntland authorities to spare the lives of two other boys, Muhamed Yasin Abdi, 17, and Daud Saied Sahal, 15, who were facing imminent military execution. Amnesty International, “Somalia: Halt execution spree of children in Puntland,” April 28, 2017. The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office reports that Puntland state authorities had more than 50 juveniles in custody whom the European Union believes had been forced to participate in fighting by Al Shabaab. The children were captured during a successful government operation against Al Shabaab in March 2016. United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office, “Human Rights Priority Country status report: January to June 2016,” updated February 8, 2017.

The human rights organization, Reprieve, reports that Saudi Arabia executed at least four juveniles in January 2016 during a mass execution of 47 people. According to Reprieve, one of the four, Ali al-Ribh, had been arrested in school, tortured into a falsely confessing to involvement in anti-government protests, and executed. Reprieve, “Global executions in 2016,” December 29, 2016. Reprieve reports that three other Saudi juveniles—Ali al-Nimr, Dawoud al-Marhoon, and Abdullah al-Zaher—who were arrested following pro-democracy protests in 2012 face execution after having been “tortured into signing false ‘confessions’, which were used in a secretive counter-terrorism court to convict them, and sentence them to death.” Reprieve, “Trump in Saudi Arabia as juveniles face execution,” May 15, 2017.

“The death penalty for juvenile offenders appears to have been abandoned by nations everywhere in large part due to the express provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and of several other international treaties and agreements. Since 1990, juvenile offenders are known to have been executed in only seven countries: China, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iran, Pakistan, Yemen, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.”
- Victor L. Streib, “The Juvenile Death Penalty Today: Death Sentences and Executions for Juvenile Crimes January 1973 - September 30, 2003” (2004)

Reported Executions of Juvenile Offenders in Other Countries Since 1990

Updated through November 2019

China

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Zhao Lin16 (C), 18 (E)2003
Gao Pan16 or 17 (C)2004

Democratic Republic of Congo

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Kasongo14 (C/E)2000

Iran

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Kazeem Shirafkan17 (E)1990
Male (name unknown)16 (E)1992
Male (name unknown)17 (E)1992
Male (name unknown)17 (E)1992
Manuchehr Taherian16 (E)1995
Ebrahim Qorbanzadeh17 (E)1999
Jassem Abrahimi17 (E)2000
Mehrdad Youssefi16 (C)2001
Mohammad Mohammadzadeh17 (C), 21 (E)2004
Salman17 (C)2004
Atefeh Rajabi Sahaaleh16 (E)2004
Iman Farrokhi17 (C)2005
Ali Safarpour Rajabi16 or 17 (C)2005
Mahmoud Asghari15 or 16 (C)2005
Ayaz Marhoni16 or 17 (C)2005
Farshid Farighi14 to 16 (C)2005
Name unknown17 (E)2005
Name unknown17 (C)2005
Rostam Tajik16 (C)2005
Majid Segound (Sagvand)17 (E)2006
Sattar17 (C)2006
Morteza M16 (C)2006
Naser Batmaniunder 18 (C)2006
Mohammad Mousawi16 (C)2007
Sa’id Qanabar Zahi17 (E)2007
Mohammad Pezhman (Pejman)under 18 (C)2007
Amir Asgariunder 18 (C)2007
Hossein Gharabaghloo16 (C)2007
Babak Rahimi17 (E)2007
Name unknownunder 18 (C)2007
Name unknownunder 18 (C)2007
Mohamad Reza Tork16 (C)2007
Makwan Moloudzadeh13 (C)2007
Amir Hoshang Fazlollahzadehunder 18 (C)2007
Javad Shojaee16 (C)2008
Mohammad Hassanzadeh16 or 17 (E)2008
Hasan Mozafariunder 18 (C)2008
Rahman Shahidiunder 18 (C)2008
Reza Hejazi15 (C)2008
Behnam Zare15 (C)2008
Gholamreza H17 (C)2008
Ahmad Zare17 (C)2008
Mola Gol Hassan17 (C)2009
Delara Darabi17 (C)2009
Ali Jafari17 (C)2009
Bahnoud Shojaee17 (C)2009
Mosleh Zamani17 (C)2009
Mohammad A.17 (C)2010
A.N.17 (C)2011
H.B.17 (C)2011
Ali Reza Molla Soltani17 (E)2011
Mohammad Norouzi17 (C)2011
Vahid Moslemi17 (C)2011
Ehsan17 (C)2011
Amir Shirmohammadi17 (C)2011
Amir A.14 (C)2012
Shahruz17 (C)2012
Samad16 (C)2012
Bahram Ahmadi17 (C)2012
Said Afshar15 (C)2013
Abdolhamid Sekhavatianunder 18 (C)2013
Arman Mohammadi12 (C)2013
Name Unknown14 (C)2013
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2013
Ahmad Seif Panahi16 (C)2013
Ahmad Jenkihoo15 (C)2013
Abdolaziz Ra’is17 (C)2013
Iraj Nasiri15 (C)2013
Mehras Rezaei17 (C)2014
Hassan Gholami14 (C)2014
Hassan Zolfaqari17 (C)2014
Reza Ganjlu16 (C)2014
Janat Mirunder 18 (C)2014
Ahmad Rahimi17 (C)2014
Ali Fouladi16 (C)2014
Ebrahim Hajati16 (C)2014
Amir Sardaha’i17 (C)2014
Hadi Veysi15 (C)2014
Fardin Ja’farian14 (C)2014
Rahim Norallahzadeh14 (C)2014
Javad Saberi17 (C)2015
Vazir Amroddin16 (C)2015
Samad Zahabi17 (C)2015
Fatemeh Salbehi17 (C)2015
Hassan Afshar17 (C)2016
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2016
Mehrdad Arman Bahr Asemani16 (C)2017
Hassan Hassan-Zadehunder 18 (C)2017
Asghar Mohamadi16 (C)2017
Alireza Tajiki15 (C)2017
Amirhossein Pouriafarunder 18 (C)2018
Ali Kazemi15 (C)2018
Mahboubeh Mofidi17 (C)2018
Abolfazl Chezani Sharahi15 (C)2018
Abolfazl Naderi
 
16 (C)2018
Zeinab Sekaanvand Lokran17 (C)2018
Omid Rostami16 (C)2018
Mehdi Sohrabifar15(C)2019
Amin Sedaghat15 (C)2019
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2020
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2020
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2020
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2021
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2021
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2021
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2022
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2022
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2022
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2022

Nigeria

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Chiebore Onuoha15 (C)1997

Pakistan

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Name Unknown17 (E)1992
Shamun Masih14 (C)1997
Ali Sher13 (C)2001
Mutabar Khan16 (C)2006
Ansar Iqbal15 (A)2015
Shafqat Hussain14 (T)2015
Aftab Bahadur15 (C)2015
Faisal MehmoodUnder 18 (C)2015
Muhammad Afzal16 (S)2015

Saudi Arabia

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Sadeq Mal-Allah17 (S)1992
Dhahian Rakan al-Sibai’l15 or 16 (C)2007
Moeid bin Hussein Hakami16 (E)2007
Sultan Bin Sulayman Bin Muslim al-Muwallad17 (C)2009
‘Issa bin Muhammad ‘Umar Muhammad17 (C)2009
Rizana Nafeek17 (C)2013
Ali bin Muhammad bin Hazam al-Shihri16 (C)2013
Sa’id bin Nasser bin Muhammad al-Shahrani17 (C)2013
Abdulkareem al-Hawaj16 (C)2019
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2017
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2017
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2018
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2019
Mohammed Jama Gesmallah16 (C)2005
Imad Ali Abdullah17 (C)2005
Nasser Munir Nasser al’Kirbi13 (E)1993
Adil Muhammad Saif al-Ma’amari16 (C)2007
Fuad Ahmed Ali Abdullaunder 18 (C)2012
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2021

South Sudan

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2017
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2017
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2018
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2019

Sudan

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Mohammed Jama Gesmallah16 (C)2005
Imad Ali Abdullah17 (C)2005

Yemen

Name of PrisonerAge at crime (C), trial (T), sentence (S), or execution (E)Year of Death
Nasser Munir Nasser al’Kirbi13 (E)1993
Adil Muhammad Saif al-Ma’amari16 (C)2007
Fuad Ahmed Ali Abdullaunder 18 (C)2012
Name Unknownunder 18 (C)2021

Country-Specific Conditions

CountryNotes
ChinaChina revised a law in 1997 forbidding the execution of defendants under age 18 at the time of the crime, but juveniles continue to be executed due to insufficient care in determining the age of defendants.
Democratic Republic of CongoIn 2001, the death sentences of five children were commuted. At the time of writing there was a moratorium on executions in effect.
PakistanIn July 2000, the Juvenile Justice System Ordinance was promulgated, abolishing the death penalty for anyone under 18 at the time of the crime. In July 2002 it was announced that 74 young offenders had been taken off death row.
YemenIn 1994 Yemen abolished the death penalty for people under 18 at the time of the crime.

Sources

Amnesty International Indecent and Internationally Illegal: The Death Penalty Against Child Offenders” September 2002, with updat­ed infor­ma­tion from Amnesty International: Execution of Child Offenders — Updated Summary of Cases, Executions of Juveniles Since 1990 (Latest ver­sion: November 2019); Amnesty International: Death Sentences and Executions 2022.