Because Iran is under strict Islamic Sharia law, the victim's parent were to decide and participate in the killer's punishment..ei, if by hanging, they had to push the chair on which he stood.
Fortunately, in Mr. Balal's case, something of rarity took place in public execution in Iran, a country that puts more people to death than any other countries apart from China. The victim's mother, approached the convict killer, slapped him in the face and then proceeded to forgive him for killing her son, thus sparing his life and end the execution.
The photos below taken by Arash Khamooshi of the semi-official Isna news on Tuesday, shows a good depiction of what happened and what followed next after the man was dramatically pardoned.
Mr Balal was to be hanged for killing an 18 year old 7 years ago
Instead of pushing the chair which would had led to Mr. Balal hanging, the victim's mother decided to slap him and then forgave him.
Rope is being removed after his life was spared
The mother of the convicted killer embraces the victim's mother to thank her for sparing his son's life.
