Iran hanged a convicted drug dealer in the northern town of Gorgan, the official news agency IRNA reported on Saturday. The 53-year-old man, whose name was not released, had been found guilty of selling five kilos (11 pounds) of opium. The hanging was carried out on December 25 in Gorgan prison.
The execution took the number of executions carried out last year to 298, according to an AFP count compiled from local press reports. Executions soared in 2007 amid a campaign which the authorities said was aimed at improving security in society and was a sharp increase on 2006 figures when Amnesty International recorded 177 people were executed. Iran has hanged 14 convicts so far in 2008, according to the media reports.