Yalda Moayeri spent years photographing public hangings in Iran, one of the world's top executioners.
Haunted by her experiences, the award-winning photojournalist is now protesting against the death penalty amid an alarming spike in the number of executions in the Islamic republic.
"I hope the death penalty is abolished for good," the 42-year-old told RFE/RL in a telephone interview. "All the executions I have documented in my life have made me oppose the death penalty."
The turning point for Moayeri came in 2013, when she photographed the execution of a 24-year-old man who was convicted of murdering two women and injuring five others. Identified by Iranian media only by his first name, Ali, he was known as the "The Hunter of Girls."
Ali was hanged in Tehran in the early hours of the morning, when executions in Iran are usually carried out. The execution was attended by the man's family, relatives of the victims, and a crowd of onlookers.
A male family member of one of the victims climbed up to the platform and kicked away the stool that Ali was standing on.
"It was shocking," said Moayeri. "He hit the stool looking happy and his family members started to dance. I couldn't control my feelings. I had seen executions before, but I had never experienced so much hatred."
Under Iran's Islamic laws, the concept of "qisas," or retributive justice, allows a victim's relatives to kill or forgive a murderer.
It was the last time Moayeri photographed an execution in Iran, saying the harrowing experience broke her. In recent years, the authorities have reduced the number of executions they carry out in public and barred journalists from documenting them.
On May 12, Moayeri shared a photo she took of the 2013 hanging on her Instagram page to protest the soaring number of executions in Iran.
'Frighteningly High'
Amnesty International said in its annual report on the death penalty released on May 16 that the number of recorded executions in Iran soared from 314 in 2021 to 576 in 2022. Most of the those executed were convicted of drug-related crimes, the rights group said.
The United Nations said on May 9 that at least 209 people have been executed in Iran so far this year. The world body blasted what it said was the "frighteningly high number of executions" in the country.
The slippers of a prisoner just after his public execution in 2016.
On May 19, Iran hanged three men after convicting them of involvement in a shooting attack that killed three security forces in the city of Isfahan during monthslong antiestablishment protests that erupted in September.
Rights groups said Saleh Mirehashemi, Majid Kazemi, and Saeed Yaqoubi faced an unfair trial, were denied access to lawyers of their choice, and were subjected to torture.
It brought to seven the number of protesters hanged in connection with the recent protests, the biggest challenge to Iran's clerical regime in decades. Human rights groups have accused Tehran of using the executions to sow fear in society.
Moayeri was among the dozens of journalists who were arrested for covering the protests. Some were later released but others remain in prison.
'Don't Execute'
In recent years, an increasing number of Iranians have taken to social media to express their opposition to the death penalty.
In July 2020, Iranians launched a massive social-media campaign calling for Iran to halt state executions. The online protest was joined by many Iranians -- including ordinary citizens as well as intellectuals, former politicians, and prominent artists.
Saleh Mirhashemi (left to right), Majid Kazemi, and Saeid Yaqoubi were reportedly executed early on May 19.
Using the Persian-language hashtag #Don't_Execute (# اعدام_نکنید), the campaign appeared to be unprecedented in its scope and the level of participation of Iranians both within and outside Iran.
Moayeri said the authorities' use of executions has normalized violence in Iranian society.
"I have tried repeatedly to put myself in the place of families [who seek retributive justice]," she said. "I don't judge them. It must be very difficult to decide. But I think it creates a cycle of violence."