LGBT rights in Iran
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Iran face severe challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Sexual activity between members of the same sex is illegal and can be punishable by death, and people can legally change their assigned sex only through a sex reassignment surgery. Currently, Iran is the only country confirmed to execute gay people federally, though death penalty for homosexuality might be enacted in Afghanistan.
LGBT rights in Iran | |
|---|---|
| Status | Same-sex relations illegal: Islamic law is applied. |
| Penalty | Execution, imprisonment, lashings, fines. |
| Gender identity | Sex reassignment surgery, which is required to change legal gender, is legalized and is partially paid for by the government. |
| Military | No |
| Discrimination protections | None |
| Family rights | |
| Recognition of relationships | No recognition of same-sex unions |
| Adoption | No |
LGBT rights in Iran have come in conflict with the penal code since the 1930s. In post-revolutionary Iran, any type of sexual activity outside a heterosexual marriage is forbidden. Same-sex sexual activities are punishable by imprisonment, corporal punishment, fines, or execution. Gay men have faced stricter enforcement actions under the law than lesbians.
The government of Iran is considered to be one of the most discriminatory towards homosexuals in the world. It is estimated that hundreds or thousands of people were executed in the immediate aftermath of revolution of whom some 20 were homosexuals. Ruhollah Khomeini called for them to be exterminated in 1979.
Transgender identity is recognized through a sex reassignment surgery. Sex reassignment surgeries are partially financially supported by the state. Some homosexual individuals in Iran have been pressured to undergo sex reassignment surgery in order to avoid legal and social persecution. Iran carries out more sex reassignment surgeries than any other country in the world after Thailand.