Executions of juveniles since 1990

The use of the death penalty for crimes committed by people younger than 18 is prohibited under international human rights law, yet some countries still execute child offenders. Such executions are few compared to the total number of executions in the world. Their significance goes beyond their number and calls into question the commitment of the executing states to respect international law.

Since 1990 Amnesty International has documented 87 executions of child offenders in 9 countries: China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, the USA and Yemen. Several of these countries have changed their laws to exclude the practice. Executions of child offenders represent a tiny fraction of the total of executions worldwide recorded by Amnesty International each year. The USA and Iran have each executed more child offenders than the other eight countries combined and Iran has now exceeded the USA's total since 1990 of 19 child executions.

The first table below gives statistics on executions of child offenders recorded by Amnesty International since 1990. The second table gives case details.

Recorded executions of child offenders since 1990: statistics

Year Recorded executions of child offenders Total recorded executions worldwide Countries carrying out executions of child offenders (numbers of reported executions are shown in parentheses)
1990 2 2029 Iran (1), USA (1)
1991 0 2086  
1992 6 1708 Iran (3), Pakistan (1), Saudi Arabia (1), USA (1)
1993 5 1831 USA (4), Yemen (1)
1994 0 2331 --
1995 1 3276 Iran (1)
1996 0 4272 --
1997 2 2607 Nigeria (1), Pakistan (1)
1998 3 2258 USA (3)
1999 2 1813 Iran (1), USA (1)
2000 6 1457 Congo (Democratic Republic) (1), Iran (1), USA (4)
2001 3 3048 Iran (1), Pakistan (1), USA (1)
2002 3 1526 USA (3)
2003 2 1146 China (1), USA (1)
2004 4 3797
China (1), Iran (3)
2005 10 2148 Iran (8), Sudan (2)
2006 5 1591 Iran (4), Pakistan (1)
2007 14 1252 Iran (11), Saudi Arabia (2), Yemen (1)
2008 8
 2390 Iran (8)
2009
 7
 714, excluding China
 Iran (5), Saudi Arabia (2)
20101527, excluding ChinaIran (1)
20113Not availableIran (3)

Recorded executions of child offenders since 1990: case details

Country Name of prisoner Age Date of execution
China Zhao Lin 16 at time of offence January 2003
  Gao Pan 16 or 17 at time of offence 8 March 2004
Democratic Republic of Congo Kasongo 14 at time of execution 15 January 2000
Iran Kazem Shirafkan 17 at time of execution 1990
  Three juveniles One aged 16, two aged 17 at time of execution 29 September 1992
 Manuchehr Taherian16 at time of executionNovember 1995
  Ebrahim Qorbanzadeh 17 at time of execution 24 October 1999
  Jassem Ebrahimi 17 at time of execution 14 October 2000
  Mehrdad Yousefi 16 at time of offence 29 May 2001
  Mohammad Mohammadzadeh 17 at time of offence 25 January 2004
  Salman 17 at time of offence 12 May 2004
  Atefeh Rajabi Sahaaleh
 16 at time of execution 15 August 2004
  Iman Farrokhi 17 at time of offence 19 January 2005
  Ali Safarpour Rajabi 16 or 17 at time of offence 13 July 2005
  Mahmoud Asghari 15 or 16 at time of offence 19 July 2005
  Ayaz Marhoni 16 or 17 at time of offence 19 July 2005
  Farshid Farighi 14 to 16 at time of offences 1 August 2005
  Name unknown 17 at time of execution 23 August 2005
  Name unknown 17 at time of offence 12 September 2005
  Rostam Tajik 16 at time of offence 10 December 2005
  Majid Segound (Sagvand) 17 at time of execution 13 May 2006
  Sattar 17 at time of offence September 2006
  Morteza M 16 at time of offence 7 November 2006
  Naser Batmani under 18 at time of offence December 2006
  Mohammad Mousawi 16 at time of offence 22 April 2007
  Sa'id Qanabar Zahi 17 at time of execution 27 May 2007
  Mohammad Pezhman (Pejman) Under 18 at time of offence 29 May 2007
  Amir Asgari Under 18 at time of offence 10 October 2007
  Hossein Gharabaghloo 16 at time of offence 17 October 2007
  Babak Rahimi 17 at time of execution 17 October 2007
  Two juveniles Under 18 at time of offence October 2007
  Mohamad Reza Tork 16 at time of offence 15 November 2007
  Makwan Moloudzadeh 13 at time of offence 4 December 2007
  Amir Hoshang Fazlollahzadeh under 18 at time of offence 31 December 2007
  Javad Shojaee 16 at time of offence 26 February 2008
  Mohammad Hassanzadeh 16 or 17 at time of execution 10 June 2008
  Hasan Mozafari Under 18 at time of offence 22 July 2008
  Rahman Shahidi Under 18 at time of offence 22 July 2008
  Reza Hejazi 15 at the time of the offence 19 August 2008
  Behnam Zare 15 at the time of the offence 26 August 2008
  Gholamreza H
 17 at the time of the offence 29 October 2008
  Ahmad Zare
17 at the time of the offence 30 December 2008
  Mola Gol Hassan
 17 at the time of the offence 21 January 2009
  Delara Darabi
 17 at the time of the offence 1 May 2009
  Ali Jafari
 17 at the time of the offence 20 May 2009
  Behnoud Shojaee
 17 at the time of the offence 11 October 2009
  Mosleh Zamani
 17 at the time of the offence 17 December 2009
 Mohammad A.17 at the time of the offence10 July 2010
 Two juveniles, A.N. and H.B.17 at the time of the offence20 April 2011
 Ali Reza Molla Soltani17 at time of execution21 September 2011
Nigeria Chiebore Onuoha 15 at time of offence, 17 at time of execution 31 July 1997
Pakistan One juvenile 17 at time of execution 15 November 1992
  Shamun Masih 14 at time of offence 30 September 1997
  Ali Sher 13 at time of offence 3 November 2001
  Mutabar Khan 16 at time of offence 13 June 2006
Saudi Arabia Sadeq Mal-Allah 17 when sentenced to death 3 September 1992
  Dhahian Rakan al-Sibai’I 15 or 16 at time of offence 21 July 2007
  Moeid bin Hussein Hakami
 16 at time of execution
 17 July 2007
  Sultan Bin Sulayman Bin Muslim al-Muwallad
 17 at the time of the offence
 10 May 2009
  'Issa bin Muhammad 'Umar Muhammad
 17 at the time of the offence
 10 May 2009
Sudan Mohammed Jamal Gesmallah
 16 at time of offence 31 August 2005
  Imad Ali Abdullah
 17 at time of offence
 31 August 2005
USA Dalton Prejean 17 at time of offence 18 May 1990
  Johnny Garrett 17 at time of offence 11 February 1992
  Curtis Harris 17 at time of offence 1 July 1993
  Frederick Lashley 17 at time of offence 28 July 1993
  Christopher Burger 17 at time of offence 7 December 1993
  Ruben Cantu 17 at time of offence 24 August 1993
  Joseph John Cannon 17 at time of offence 22 April 1998
  Robert Anthony Carter 17 at time of offence 18 May 1998
  Dwayne Allen Wright 17 at time of offence 14 October 1998
  Sean Sellers 16 at time of offence 4 February 1999
  Steve Roach 17 at time of offence 10 January 2000
  Chris Thomas 17 at time of offence 13 January 2000
  Glen McGinnis 17 at time of offence 25 January 2000
  Gary Graham 17 at time of offence 22 June 2000
  Gerald Mitchell 17 at time of offence 22 October 2001
  Napolean Beazley 17 at time of offence 28 May 2002
  T.J. Jones 17 at time of offence 8 August 2002
  Toronto Patterson 17 at time of offence 28 August 2002
  Scott Allen Hain 17 at time of offence 3 April 2003
Yemen Naseer Munir Nasser al'Kirbi 13 at time of execution 21 July 1993
  Adil Muhammad Saif al-Ma'amari 16 at time of offence February 2007