The United Nations on Monday urged Iran to stop using the death penalty, citing a "worrying surge in executions" that has seen at least 612 people killed so far this year.
"Reports that there have been several hundred executions in Iran so far this year underscore how deeply disturbing the situation has become and the urgent need for an immediate moratorium in the country on the use of the death penalty," said a statement from UN human rights chief Volker Turk.
