Zeinab Sekaanvand, a 17-year-old girl who defended herself from domestic violence, is accused of murder in Iran and was sentenced to death. Arrested in 2012, Sekaanvand’s case is an extreme example of the bleak realities women face. It underscores the absurdity of a judicial system that all too often abuses women convicts. She married very young — she was 15 when she got married. After suffering months of physical and verbal abuse from her husband, she infamously admitted to stabbing him while being interrogated.
The fate of Sekaanvand is far from an exceptional case. Salbehi, who was arrested for committing murder in 2008 at the age of 17, endured many of the same severe conditions. Salbehi married her cousin at age 12 and became pregnant by age 13, giving birth to a son soon after. Her arrest and subsequent interrogation without access to a lawyer put into serious question the fairness of her trial.
Today, Iran is the world’s number one executioner of women. 2025 is set to be a historical year with, so far, at least 30 women executions already set. This is part of a chilling trend, with 31 women executed in 2024. According to the latest figure released by Iran, the country executed 419 people during one calendar year, including 19 female executions for murder. This pernicious trend illustrates a widespread and grave issue with the Iranian legal system. Unjust punishments disproportionately harm women, particularly those from marginalized communities.
Zeinab Sekaanvand’s sentence, known as qisas or retribution-in-kind, stems from her involvement in her husband’s death. Her story speaks to those in the U.S. who have fought for women’s rights and are inspired by women in Iran. The intersection of gender, poverty, and systemic legal inequities often leaves women such as Sekaanvand particularly vulnerable to the most severe outcomes.
Another woman, Goli Kouhkan, is currently serving a seven-year sentence on death row in Gorgan Central Prison. Kouhkan’s case is just one of many examples of the terrible situations women charged with murdering their abusers find themselves in. On the morning that her husband was murdered, she found him attacking her five-year-old son. Her father poignantly remarked about the harsh realities of losing a daughter to such tragedies:
“I gave my daughter away in a white dress; the only way you can return [is wrapped in a shroud].” – Kouhkan’s father
Ziba Baktyari, an advocate for women’s rights in Iran, noted that Kouhkan’s case is emblematic of a broader societal issue:
“Kouhkan is not one single case.”
Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, emphasized the intersectionality that exacerbates Kouhkan’s circumstances:
“Kouhkan belongs to an ethnic minority; she’s a woman and she is poor. She is probably the absolute weakest in Iranian society.”
These narratives highlight the systematic oppression that erodes women’s rights and rights to equal legal treatment in Iran. Women are being killed at epidemic levels all over the country. In response, advocacy groups such as the National Fair Housing Alliance have called for immediate, systemic reforms to prevent continued violations of marginalized communities’ rights.