Female executions 2020 to date.

Women continue to suffer the death penalty in the 21st century. The majority have been hanged or beheaded, whilst others have been shot or executed by lethal injection. Two have suffered electrocution in America.

2024 case details.

Hajar Atabaki, aged 41, was hanged in in Qazvin Central Prison, Iran for drug offences on Saturday the 30th of January.

On Wednesday the 31st of January a man and his girlfriend were put to death, presumably by lethal injection, in Chongqing in China. Their names were Zhang Bo, the father, and Ye Chengchen, Zhang's girlfriend. They were convicted of the murder of his two children, a 2 year old girl and a 1 year old boy, whom they had thrown from the 15th floor of a high rise apartment window. The children from his previous marriage were seen by Ye as an obstacle to their relationship and she had pressured Zhang to kill them.

On the same day 27 year old Zahra Nazarian was hanged at the Sabzevar prison in Khorasan Razavi province, Iran for the murder of her sister’s husband four years ago.

Two women, Abeer bint Ali bin Dhafer Al-Amri, and Bayan bint Hafez Siddiq were beheaded in Riyadh Saudi Arabia on Sunday the 11th of February along with three men. They were a criminal gang who abducted, robbed and murdered Khaled bin Dalak and had committed other similar crimes, involving kidnapping and robbery.

On the 18th of March Yassin Zolfaqari and his wife, whose first has not been released, were hanged in the Central Prison of Tabriz in Iran for possessing 3 kilograms of crack cocaine.

29 year old Ismail Hassaniani, and his wife 19 year old Marjan Hajizadeh were hanged in Zanjan prison Iran, on Thursday the 11th of April for drug trafficking. Marjan was just 16 years old at the time of the crime.

Soraya Mohammadi had been convicted of murdering her sister-in-law's landlord two years prior, allegedly motivated by theft. She was hanged in Karaj prison in Iran on Thursday the 25th of April with two men.

An unnamed woman was hanged with three men in Birjand prison in Iran on Tuesday the 30th of April, having been convicted of drug trafficking.

At dawn on the 8th of May, 33 year old Fariba Mohammadzahi was hanged for drug offences in Kerman prison in Iran, along with two male offenders.

On Wednesday, May 15th, 33 year old Razieh who had been sentenced to death for the murder of her four and eight-year-old children was executed in Vakil Abad prison in Mashhad, Iran. This mother, who took custody of her children after separating from her drug addict husband, cited economic and social problems as the reason for her crime.

50 year old Parvin Mousavi was one of five prisoners hanged in Urmia Central Prison, Iran for drug offences on Saturday the 18th of May.

On the same day 27-year-old Fatemeh Abdullahi was hanged for murdering her husband, who was also her cousin. She was executed in Nishapur in eastern Iran.

On Tuesday the 22nd of May, Saber Abu Bakr Abdul Rahman Al-Nour and Fatima Saeed Mabkhout Al-Askari Al-Awadi were executed by shooting in by the Ma’rib Governate in Eastern Yemen having been convicted of murder of Ahmed Dhifallah Embarak Daman Al-Nassi.

On Wednesday the 5th of June Saleh Ali Ahmed Saree together with two men, Omar Salmeen Omar Qasan and Mohsen Awad Salem Naseer, were executed by shooting in public for the kidnapping and murder of three year old Taif Al-Rifai in July 2016. The crime occurred in the Shabwa Governate of Yemen.

Saudi Arabia beheaded Ethiopian maid, Alima Fekadu Tsegaye on Monday the 15th of July. She had been convicted of the murder of a Saudi man in Tabuk, named Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Ghadyan Al-Balawi, whom she had beaten to death.

On Saturday the 20th of July Mahmoudi Nia was hanged for the murder of her husband in Adel Abad prison in Shiraz Iran.

Three women were among seven prisoners hanged for drug offences in Birjand prison, in Iran on Tuesday the 23rd of July.

On Saturday the 27th of July an unnamed woman was hanged in Khorramabad Central Prison with three men, all having been convicted of drug offences.

Nigerian Fawzah Baljun Abayomi was publicly beheaded in the Makkah Al-Mukarramah region of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday the 3rd of September having been convicted of smuggling cocaine into the Kingdom.

Maung Kaung Htet and his wife Chan Myae Thu were executed at 4 a.m. Myanmar time on the 23rd of September. The pair were convicted of involvement in a parcel bomb attack on Yangon’s Insein Prison in October 2022.

An unnamed woman was hanged in Al-Hout prison in the city of Nasiriyah in Iraq on Wednesday the 25th of September, with 20 men, all having been convicted of terrorism (ISIS). She was the first woman to be hanged since 2013.

Akhtar Ghorbanlou was hanged in Ahar prison in East Azerbaijan Province of Iran on Tuesday the 1st of October for the murder of her husband by poisoning him with pills. She was forced into the marriage at age 17.

On Wednesday morning, the 2nd of October the death sentence of 41 year old Zahra Faizi, a Turkish citizen and native of Tabriz was carried out in Tabriz Central Prison in Iran. She had been convicted of the murder of her husband.

Leila Qaemi was hanged in Qazalhasar prison in Karaj Iran on the 3rd of October for the murder of her husband whom she had strangled to death eight years ago with the help of her boyfriend.

Saudi Arabia beheaded Nigerian born Aisha Barnasas Mohammed on the 7th of October for smuggling cocaine into the country.

On Wednesday the 16th of October an unnamed woman was hanged in Hamadan prison in Iran with 1 man, both having been convicted of drug offences.

A woman named Nasrin Firoozi killed her mother in law, with the connivance of her lover named Muhammad, and both were arrested. They were sentenced to death by the criminal court of an East Azerbaijan province on the charge of murder. They were executed in Tabriz prison in Iran at dawn on Sunday, the 20th of October.

On the 21st of October the Syrian regime executed an unnamed woman who had been convicted of killing her husband about ten years ago, in the Sweida Central Prison in southern Syria. She had poisoned him, in collaboration with her boyfriend, who was sentenced to life imprisonment.

A man and an unnamed woman were hanged in Rasht's Lakan prison in Iran on the 7th of November, having been convicted of drug crimes.

At dawn on Sunday the 10th of November the death sentence of two Turkish prisoners, a woman 35 year old Maherkh Khani and a 45 year old man Kazem Babaei, were hanged in Tabriz Central Prison for drug crimes.

On the 13th of November an unnamed woman was hanged for murder in Qazalhasar prison in Karaj, in Iran with 7 men.

Nigerian born Shakirat Alaidi Giwa was beheaded in the Medina region of Saudi Arabia on Saturday the 23rd of November, having been convicted of smuggling cocaine into the Kingdom.

At dawn on Sunday the 24th of November, 36 year old Fariba Maleki Shiravand was hanged in Khorram Abad Central Prison in Iran for the murder of her husband's mother and sister about four years ago.

2023 case details. (32 executions)

Two women have been executed up to the 14th of February 2023, both in Fardis prison in Karaj, Iran. Both were hanged for murder and their names were Nazifeh (family name not known) who was hanged for the murder of her husband and Fariba Hosseini who was executed for an unspecified murder.

On Sunday, the 26th of February, five prisoners, including two women whose identities and crimes are unknown, were hanged in Birjand prison in south Khorasan, Iran.

Lila Bamri was hanged for drug offences in Bandar Abbas prison in Iran on Monday, the 27th of February. No further details were given.

Nasrin Niazi was hanged in Urmia, Iran, together with five men on the 16th of March. It is thought that her crime was drug trafficking although this was not confirmed.

Maryam Najjar was arrested three years ago on charges of murdering her husband and was hanged with 1 man in Dastgerd prison in Iran on the 28th of March 2023.

On Sunday, the 30th of March, an unnamed woman was hanged in Central Prison of Zahedan, Iran, together with an unnamed male, both for murder.

On the same day 39 year old Madina Sabzevan was hanged in Birjand prison, Iran along with two men for drug offences whose names were Abdullah Zarouzhi (Zahrozai) and Mohammad Shibak.

Saudi Arabia beheaded Nada bint Ali bin Mohammed Abu Shaqara on the 16th of May for the murder of her mother, Sharifa bint Ahmed bin Ibrahim Maqari.

Yemeni born Shaabana Salem Yahya Said was beheaded in Saudi Arabia on the 25th of May for the murder her Saudi husband, Salem bin Ali bin Abdullah Issa.

35 year old Monireh Nourikia was hanged in Mashhad prison in Iran on the 28th of May, having been convicted of murder of her child (step daughter?) in June 2019.

At dawn on Sunday, the 2nd of July, a Baloch female prisoner named Afsaneh Shahiki, 50, was hanged in the central prison of Kerman.

Afshaneh Shahiki was arrested eight years ago in Bam City and later sentenced to death by the judicial system of the Islamic Republic of Iran on the charge of murdering her husband with a gun.

On Sunday, the 9th of July, the death sentences of 32-year-old Monireh Siyadat and Farziyeh Shokrollahi were carried out in Dastgerdi Prison in Isfahan, Iran. Monireh Siyadat was convicted of murdering her husband and Farziyeh Shokrollahi of premeditated murder, no other details being released.

A female prisoner was executed in the Rajaei Shahr prison of Karaj in Iran on Wednesday the 12th of July. Fateme Yusuf Abadi was hanged for murder, but no details of the crime were released.

A former kindergarten teacher in central China was executed on Thursday the 14th of July for a murder committed four years ago. Wang Yun, 39, was found guilty of killing one child and injuring 24 others by poisoning their rice porridge with sodium nitrite. The execution, presumably by lethal injection, took place after Wang's unsuccessful appeal against her sentence, which was initially handed down by the Jiaozuo city intermediate people's Court in September 2020.

On Monday the 24th of July two Saudi nationals were executed in Mecca for killing their parents and siblings, the Kingdom’s Ministry of Interior said.
Abdulaziz bin Fahed bin Ghazayh al-Harethi and his sister Uhud bint Fahd bin Ghazai al-Harthi were sentenced to death after they were convicted of killing their mother and their brothers, Abdulrahman and Abdullah, by placing sleeping pills in their dinner. They then shot the mother and Abdulrahman dead in their sleep the next day and shot Abdullah as he was sitting in the house, the ministry said in a statement published on its website.
After committing their crime, al-Harethi and his sister then moved the bodies to a rest-house that belonged to them after which they lured their father to the location and shot him. They then set the rest-house on fire with the bodies inside by pouring gasoline and for intentionally causing a gas leak, the ministry added.

45 year old Singaporean woman Saridewi Djamani was hanged at Changi prison on Friday the 28th of July 2023, becoming the first woman to be hanged in Singapore for nearly 20 years.
She had been convicted if trafficking a total of 1kg of drugs containing 30.72g of pure heroin on the 17th of June 2016.

On Thursday the 10th of August 40 year old Ryqiyeh Abedini was hanged in Hamedan Central Prison in Iran for the murder of her husband in 2020.

27-year-old Mahboubeh Roshandel was hanged on the morning of Monday, September 4th, 2023, in Mashhad Central Prison in Iran, having been convicted of murdering her mother in-law.

On Thursday the 8th of September an unnamed woman was hanged in Qom prison Iran, for murder. No other details of her case have been released.

An unnamed woman was hanged in Central Prison of Isfahan, Iran for murder. The execution took place at dawn on Saturday, the 21st of October 2023. No further details of her case were given.

Maryam Forough-Manesh was hanged for premeditated murder of her husband in the Central Prison of Yasouj, Iran on Wednesday the 1st of November. No further details of her case were given.

46 year old Zarkhaton Mazarzehi was hanged in Kerman Prison, Iran on Tuesday the 14th of November for drug trafficking. She was arrested in 2017 while traveling on a bus to Shiraz with a package containing drugs. 

An unnamed woman was hanged in Lakan Prison of Rasht, Iran for murder. The execution took place at dawn on the 26th of November 2023. No further details of her case were given.

On Monday the 4th of December Saudi Arabia executed Huda bint Al-Humaidi bin Hamoud Al-Mutairi, a Saudi national. “She had killed her husband, Hassan bin Ayesh bin Marzouq Al-Mutairi, by stabbing him several times with a knife, which led to his death and the looting of sums of money from him”, according to a statement released by The Saudi Ministry of Interior. She was beheaded in Riyadh.

Tabatu Issa was beheaded in Saudi Arabia on the 10th of December for the murder of a Saudi female named Aisha bint Sulaiman bin Rashid al-Shaeifani by poisoning her drink with a chemical substance (acid).

Lao Rongzhi, age 49, was executed by lethal injection on Monday the 18th of December in Nanchang, East China's Jiangxi Province for her part in the murders of seven people, including a child, between 1996 and 1999. She had been on the run for nearly 20 years before finally being arrested in 2019. Her codefendant, and then boyfriend, Fa Ziying was executed in 1999.

30 year old Samira Sabzian Fard was hanged in the in Ghezelhesar prison in Iran on the 20th of December, for the intentional murder of her husband, by poisoning his juice, when she was 19, with the participation of two other people, including her sister, in Mallard city, Tehran province. Her sister, who was 14 years old at that time, was released after being arrested by paying a fine of 150 million tomans.

Linilini Akhtar was beheaded in Saudi Arabia on the 24th of December for the murder of a Saudi man named Awda bin Alyan bin Ali al-Shamri.

Nasim Namazi, a Turkish prisoner from Urmia, was executed by hanging in Urmia Central Prison in Iran on the 29th of December. The previous evening, the death sentences of three Kurdish prisoners connected to Nasim Namazi's case, Wafa Hanareh, Aram Omari Bardiani, and Rahman Parhazo, were carried out in. All four had previously been sentenced to death on charges of "espionage for Israel."

2022 case details.

On Saturday the 5th of February 23 year old Khatoun Hamidi was hanged in the Central Prison of Qazvin for the murder of her fiancé in 2017. She may have been under 18 at the time of the crime.

On the 14th of March, Hooman and his wife Shirin were hanged in Shiraz Central Prison for murder. No other details were released.

On the 6th of May a woman whose family name is given as Shahoozhi was hanged for the murder of her husband in Zahedan prison, together with three men for drug offences.

Ms. Hayati was hanged in Shiraz Central Prison in Iran on the 22nd of May for the murder of her husband. She was hanged with one man, 32-year-old Abdolbari Rigi, who was sentenced to death on drug-related charges.

Laden Mulla Saeedi was executed on Wednesday, June 25, in Qarchak prison in Varamin, Iran for premeditated murder.

On Monday the 6th of June, a Ms. Gargij was hanged in Zahedan prison, Iran for the murder of her husband, one of twelve executions that day.

Robab Danaii was hanged in Yazd prison in Iran on the 21st of July for murder. No other details have been released.

On the 27th of July, 31 year old Sahila Abedi was hanged in Sanandaj prison, Iran for the murder of her husband in 2014.

Faranak Beheshti was hanged in Urmia Central Prison, Iran on the 27th of July, also for the murder of her husband in 2017.

Sanobar Jalali, an Afghan woman, was executed in Gohardasht prison Iran, on the same day, for murdering her husband during a family fight.

At dawn on Sunday, the 20th of August, the death sentence of two prisoners, including an unnamed woman, were executed in Adel Abad prison in Shiraz, Iran for murder.

On Saturday the 10th of September a woman, whose name was only given as M-Shehbakhsh, was hanged with four men for premeditated murder Zahedan prison, Iran.

An Ethiopian maid named Fatemah Mohammed Assfaou was executed in Riyadh on the 2nd of October. She had killed a 12 year old girl, a Saudi citizen, named Nawal bint Said al-Bishi.

On the 27th of October an unnamed woman was hanged in Boroujerd Prison in Iran for the murder of her husband. No other details were given.

Kuwait carried out seven hangings on Wednesday the 16th of November including those of two women Rabab Adly Mostafa Shehata (Kuwaiti) and Aisha Nemo Viso (Ethiopian) both of whom had been convicted of premeditated murder.

On Saturday the 4th of December, Moloud Molazadeh was hanged for murdering her father-in-law in 2016. On Wednesday afternoon, she was transferred from Dolat Abad prison in Isfahan, Iran to Dastgerd prison for execution.

2021 case details.

Lisa Marie Montgomery was executed under Federal Law at the Federal execution facility at Terre Haute, Indiana USA at 1.30 a.m. on Wednesday the 13th of January. She was convicted of the murder of 23-year-old Bobbie Jo Stinnett in her home in Skidmore, Missouri. Lisa Marie Montgomery, then aged 36, strangled Stinnett from behind with a rope and then cut Stinnett's unborn child, eight months into gestation, from her womb. The child was safely recovered by authorities and returned to her father. She was christened Victoria Jo Stinnett.

On the same day Saudi Arabia beheaded female Saudi citizen, Hutoon Bint Ali Ibn Abdul Wahid Majida and Nigerian male Ahmed Abakar Othman Muhammad in the city of Makkah Al-Mukarramah. They had been convicted of breaking into a private home and beating the owner to death.

A female and a male prisoner sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder, were hanged at Ardabil Central Prison in Iran at dawn on Monday the 8th of February 2021. 25-year-old Saeed Naderi and his 23 year old female cousin who was married to Saeed’s uncle had murdered the uncle five years ago and set his corpse on fire.

Eliza Aban Othu a 39-year-old South Sudanese woman was hanged on Tuesday the 9th of February 2021 in Khartoum, Sudan, for the murder of her younger sister, Teresa, three years ago.
In 2019, a court found guilty of killing Teresa Aban Othu the previous year. Eliza allegedly quarrelled with Teresa over a matter relating to their children, in Haj Yousef.
A struggle ensued resulting in Teresa's death.

Zahra Ismaili who was transferred from Qarchak prison in Varamin to Rajai Shahr prison in Iran on the 16th of February for her execution on Wednesday the 17th of February. Zahra was 42 years old and the mother of two children. She had been arrested and sentenced to death for the murder of her husband by shooting him with his service pistol. She was hanged with six men, all for murder.

On Saturday the 27th of February Egypt carried out the hangings of three women at Cairo's Appeals Prison. Nahid Othman Rifai Abdel-Aal was executed for the murder by strangulation of her neighbour’s four year old daughter, Hanin, to steal her gold earring in November of 2015. She then disposed of the little girl’s body in the trash. The other two women, who have not been named, were hanged for the poisoning murder of the one woman’s husband.

Three unnamed women were hanged together with 8 unnamed men, all for murders, on the 2nd of March in Egypt’s Burj Al Arab prison.

Maryam Karimi was hanged in Rasht Central Prison, Iran on Saturday the 13th of March for the murder of her husband in 2009. Her father had helped with the murder and was also sentenced to death but was not executed. It is reported that they had killed her husband who was abusive, physically violent and wouldn’t consent to a divorce. The father who saw no other way of saving his daughter from the abuse, helped her in killing him. . It has also been reported that she was hanged by her daughter, which is legally possible. The daughter would have been permitted to be present under Iranian law as she was the next of kin to her father. She was also able under Iranian law to pardon her mother and her grandfather.

Nafiseh Pakmehr, a resident of Mashhad from the village of Qaleh Nawabgheh, near Taybad in Khorasan Razavi province, Iran was hanged on Sunday the 14th of March in Taybad prison for the murder of her husband eight years ago.

At 5.00 a.m. on Thursday the 18th of March the Prisons Authority of Egypt’s Ministry of Interior carried out the executions of six men and three women inside the in Cairo’s Appeal Prison. The bodies were transferred to the Zeinhom morgue, in preparation for handing over to their families for burial. All had been convicted of murder. None of the prisoners were named.

On Friday the 19th of March 39 year old Laazeth Muhammad Salma was hanged at Cairo's Appeals Prison in Egypt for the murder, by shooting, of her veterinarian husband, Saeed, in October 2009. At the same time Nasreen Fawzi Suleiman and her husband, Ali Mustafa Mahmoud Mohamed, were executed for the robbery and murder of businessman Ashraf Mahal on the 15th of September 2016. The bodies were transferred to the Zeinhom morgue in preparation for handing them over to their families for burial.

Kobra Fatemi, 41, was hanged in Yazd Central Prison in Iran on the 23rd of May. She had been in jail since 2015 convicted of her husband’s murder. The family of the victim had agreed to receive the blood money and save her from execution. But the victim’s uncle, a member of the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), did not accept this and demanded that the death sentence be carried out.

At dawn on Sunday, the 30th of May, Yousef Pirastavan and his wife, Shamsi, were hanged in Qazvin Prison in Iran. They arrested on the Qazvin-Karaj highway about 7 to 8 years ago on charges of carrying 380 kilograms of drugs. She is the first woman to be executed since the 2017 amendments to the Anti-Narcotics laws.

On Sunday the 27th of June, Ayman Zakaria Abdel Al-Rahman was among a group of nine prisoners hanged at Cairo's Appeals Prison in Egypt, all for murder.

Egypt carried out the death sentence by hanging on Friday the 3rd of September of a prostitute, whose name was just given as Rasha. She had stabbed one of her clients to death over a dispute about how much she should be paid and injured a second one. It is probable that this hanging was carried out in the Cairo's Appeals Prison.

On the 9th of September three unnamed women were hanged in Rajai Shahr prison in Iran, it is thought for murder. Four men had been hanged there earlier that day.

A woman, identified only as G. Q. was hanged with her husband, A. B. in Syria on the 21st of September for the murder of their three sons. The couple had twice attempted to kill the children with poison, but as this did not work they strangled them to death in May 2020.

Susan Rezaeipour was hanged in Qazvin Central Prison in Iran, at dawn on Wednesday, the 26th of October.

31 year old Susan had been forced into marriage by her family and her husband was an alcoholic. She was sentenced to death for premeditated murder of her husband, who was also her cousin. She had been in prison for 6 years while negotiations went on with her husband’s father who ultimately refused to pardon her. The murder took place after her husband passed out through drink, in their home.

On Tuesday the 23rd of December Siavash Ardashiri and his wife whose first name was not given were hanged in Yasuj prison in Iran for a double murder.

41 year old Maryam Khakpour from Kashan was hanged in Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan, Iran on Thursday, the 25th of November. She had been sentenced to death on drug charges.

Three unnamed women were reportedly hanged on the 9th of December in Kerman prison, Iran. No details of their identities or crimes have been released.

On the 15th of December 42 year old Masoumeh Zarei was hanged for the murder of her husband in the prison of Amol prison. Masoumeh Zarei was released from the public ward the day before and spent the night before the execution of the sentence in the prison staff office with five prison guards due to lack of space in solitary confinement. (Prisoners usually spend one to three days in solitary before their hanging)

Masoumeh was handcuffed and taken out of the prison staff room at 6 am on Tuesday in an attempt to obtain the consent of the victim's family to a reprieve. She was last seen by other inmates at 7:30 am. She was finally executed at around 8 o'clock inside the Amol prison administration building. Execution of the sentence was in a place where there is traffic and was left hanging for about 20 minutes. Before the execution of the sentence, the prison authorities waited for about half an hour for a female police officer to execute the sentence, and they gave her sugar water three times due to excessive psychological pressure".

Fatemeh Aslani was hanged on Sunday the 19th of December in Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan, Iran for the murder of her husband nine years ago.

2020 case details.

On the 9th of January 35 year old Sara M. was hanged in the Central Prison of Mashhad in Iran for the murder of her husband by dousing him with acid.

On Tuesday, the 14th of January, 29 year old Malihah Haji Hassani was hanged in Shiraz Central Prison in Iran stabbing her fiancé to death over a family dispute. She had been in prison for two years.

Aisha Ahmed Omar Bahasin, a Yemeni national was beheaded on Thursday the 30th of January, in the Jeddah governorate of Makkah Al-Mukarramah region of Saudi Arabia for her murder of her husband Ahmed bin Omar bin Muhammad Bafart (a Saudi national) by stabbing him to death.

On Wednesday the 4th of March, Najwa. T, together with her boyfriend, Ramy. P, and another friend, Rafiq SAL were hanged in Egypt’s Tanta prison for the stabbing murder of her husband, Sameh.

32 year old Mehri was hanged in the Central Prison of Mashhad, Iran on Sunday the 2nd of August for the murder by stabbing of her husband, Amir, in 2014. The motive for the stabbing was jealousy. Amir was a scrap dealer and Mehir worked with him. At the scrapyard another young woman asked him to go with her and this lead to a jealous outburst.

On Tuesday the 18th of August, 38 year old Marzieh Ebrahimipour, was hanged with four men in Iran’s Central Prison of Mashhad, also known as Vakilabad Prison, all having been convicted of separate murders. Marzieh a resident of the Safar Ghale village near the city of Dargaz, was arrested in 2012 on charges of stabbing to death taxi driver, Mohammad Rousta, in a dispute over the fare and his tip.

Belqis Farhan Qaid, age 34, was shot on Sunday morning the 6th of September, in a public square in Al Basateen in the Dar Saad district of Yemen. She had been convicted for her part in the rape and murder of Muhammad Saeed Al-Baroudi, a 12 year old boy from Al-Basateen who was dismembered after he was killed.
The two male co-defendants, Wadah Refat and Mihamed Khaled were executed in the same square in February 2019. Her execution was postponed due to her being pregnant at the time of her trial.

32 year old Mahtab Shafiei was hanged in Iran’s Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj on Wednesday the 23rd of September, together with five men. She was convicted about 7 years ago on charges of murdering her unfaithful husband and her grandmother.

Amani A., age 25, was hanged with her lover, Hasan M. H. in the Cairo Appeals Prison in Egypt on Tuesday the 6th of October for the murder by stabbing of her husband, Muhammad A. A. in 2016.

On Sunday the 11th of October 33 year old Razieh was hanged in the Central Prison of Mashhad, Iran, for the murder by suffocation of her two children, 8 year old Tahereh (f) and 4 year old son Alireza.)

40 year old Affifi Muhammad Al-Shafei was hanged on the 12th of October in Egypt’s Minya prison with 7 men. It is presumed that she was convicted of murder but no actual details were released by the authorities.

Egypt hanged an unnamed woman in the Dakahlia Governorate on the 29th of October for the murder of her neighbour’s three year daughter, named Hanan, in order to steal her gold earrings in October 2016. She afterward disposed of the body in the trash and it has never been recovered.

30 year old Amira L. was hanged in Zeinhom prison in Egypt on Tuesday the 24th of November for the murder of her husband’s two children, Waad and Bilal, by setting fire to their apartment in revenge for her husband threatening her with divorce for maltreating the children. Three unnamed women were hanged with her, all having been convicted of separate murders.

34 year old Heba M. was hanged in Qena prison in Egypt on Saturday the 28th of November for luring her school teacher husband into their home where he was battered to death by her unknown accomplice and afterwards his body set on fire and the remains thrown into the Nile.

On Friday the 4th of December a 26 year old woman whose name was given as Z. M. was hanged in Mashad prison Iran for the murder of her husband after she had an affair with another man, and kidnapping her son presumably for ransom.

On Thursday the 10th of December Saudi Arabia executed Fadia bint Hassan bin Tawfiq Al-Qalaa (Saudi) and her accomplice, Sardar Abdullah Al-Mousa (Syrian male) in the city of Buraidah for the murder of Fadia’s husband, Ibrahim Al-Ghosn, who was head of the municipal council in Buraidah. Ibrahim Al-Ghosn was beaten to death in the marital home.

Zeinab Khodamradi, aged 33, was hanged on the 27th of December in Sanandaj prison for the murder by stabbing of her two children some five years ago. Apparently Zeinab had suffered from chronic depression during her last pregnancy.

General.
Most female executions are for murder.
America, Botswana, China, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Sudan have all carried out death sentences for murder in the 21st century.
China, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam have executed women for drug offences and it is thought that they all have women on death row at this time. India has three condemned women in its prisons who face death by hanging, if their executions proceed.

Women and the death penalty.
Women account for less than 1% of all executions carried out worldwide in recent years and there is a marked reluctance to execute them in most countries. The penal codes of most countries prohibit the execution of pregnant women, who are either reprieved at once or, in theory, liable to be executed after they have given birth. In practice, I can find no case where this has happened and all such death sentences have been commuted.

Women tend not to commit the more heinous murders in the main and are more likely to be convicted of family/domestic murders, which are often perceived as less serious.

Back to Contents page Female executions in the later 20th century Female executions 2000 - 2019 Female hangings 1988 to date