Investigations carried out by the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) show that various human rights violations have taken place in Iranian Kurdistan in April 2021.
According to the information collected by the statistics and documentation centre of the KHRN, five prisoners have been executed by Iran and two civilians have been shot dead by security forces in April.
At least 19 Kurdish civilians and activists have been detained and six others have been sentenced to varying terms in jail in April. Two kolbars have lost their lives in border areas while 13 have been wounded, either as a result of incidents, torture, or being shot by Iranian military forces.
April also saw two workers lose their lives due to the explosion of a landmine found among metal scraps in Kermanshah. Also, one worker has lost his life in a work incident in Iraqi Kurdistan, and six workers have been injured in work incidents in Iran.
Executions
In April, Iran executed five prisoners sentenced to death penalty on drug-related charges.
| Name | Execution location | Execution date |
| Ahad Habibvand | Orumiyeh Central Prison | 4-Apr-21 |
| Mohammad Karim Mahmoudi | Orumiyeh Central Prison | 4-Apr-21 |
| Sadeq Mohi | Orumiyeh Central Prison | 4-Apr-21 |
| Bayazid Rashidi | Orumiyeh Central Prison | 10-Apr-21 |
| Arsalan Moradi | Birjand Prison | 12-Apr-21 |
Killing of civilians by security forces
On 14 April, forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) opened fire at a house in the Mowlik village of Mako, West Azerbaijan province, using light and semi-heavy weapons and killed a 40-year-old civilian named Ahmad Arsan.
On 27 April, the police opened fire on a vehicle of a civilian named Sohbat Samadi-Nasab, who comes from Dalahu district of Kermanshah province, while he was travelling on Dalahu Road. The civilian was severely injured and eventually lost his life in hospital a few days later.
Detentions
At least 50 Kurdish civilians and civil rights activists were summoned and interrogated in the security institutions of various cities across Iranian Kurdistan. At least 19 people were detained throughout the month. Of these detainees, juveniles Armin Mohammadi and Nima Hassanpour and were detained on the accusation of raising the flag of Kurdistan.
| Name | Detention location | Detention date |
| Fardin Mowloudi | Sanandaj | 1-Apr-21 |
| Salah Bahramian | Oshnavieh | 11-Apr-21 |
| Satar Karimi | Dehloran | 13-Apr-21 |
| Saeid Karimi | Dehloran | 13-Apr-21 |
| Shahram Arsan | Maku | 14-Apr-21 |
| Mohammad Argha | Maku | 14-Apr-21 |
| Marziyeh Gholam-Veysi | Sanandaj | 24-Apr-21 |
| Sirwa Abdollahi | Sanandaj | 24-Apr-21 |
| Ataollah Reza-Babaei | Sanandaj | 24-Apr-21 |
| Mehdi Seyfi | Sanandaj | 24-Apr-21 |
| Fardin Rahimi | Sanandaj | 24-Apr-21 |
| Rasoul Abdollahnezhad | Piranshahr | 26-Apr-21 |
| Amir Rezaei | Sanandaj | 28-Apr-21 |
| Arash Ahmadian | Sanandaj | 28-Apr-21 |
| Aram Moradian | Sanandaj | 28-Apr-21 |
| Armin Mohammadi | Orumiyeh | 28-Apr-21 |
| Nima Hassanpour | Orumiyeh | 28-Apr-21 |
| Kaveh Menbari | Sanandaj | 28-Apr-21 |
| Sherko Menbari | Sanandaj | 28-Apr-21 |
Kolbars
During this period, one kolbar was killed in torture by Turkish military forces, one lost his life due to falling from mountain heights and 13 others were injured, mainly as a result of shootings by the military forces located in the border areas. Two kolbars Bahram Samadi and Foad Rahpeykar were tortured by Iranian border guards.
| Name | Incident location | Incident date | Injured/Dead |
| Hakim Osmani | Border areas | 9-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Esmaeil Rahimi | Baneh border area | 9-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Zaher Khezrzadeh | Baneh border area | 15-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Farshad Khoshmaram | Oshnavieh border area | Mid-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Hassan Kachanlou | Maku border area | 15-Apr-21 | Dead |
| Bahram Samadi | Maku border area | 15-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Hiwa Qaderi | Baneh border area | 17-Apr-21 | Dead |
| Haji Mineh Ali | Sardasht border area | 17-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Foad Rahpeykar | Hawraman border area | 22-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Zanyar Hatam-Panah | Marivan border area | 25-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Karvan Manouchehri | Marivan border area | 25-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Salah Vatan-Doust | Marivan border area | 25-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Aram Manouchehri | Marivan border area | 25-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Soran Vatan-Doust | Marivan border area | 25-Apr-21 | Injured |
| Rahmatollah Qadernezhad | Tah Tah Ghaut in Hawraman | 28-Apr-21 | Injured |
Landmine explosions
On 29 April, two scrap metal vendors in Kermanshah, lost their lives during the explosion of a landmine they found among scrap metals.
| Name | Explosion location | Explosion date | Status | Description |
| Mohammad Bazvand | Kermanshah | 29-Apr-21 | Dead | scrap metal vendor |
| Mohammad Rasoul Rahimi | Kermanshah | 29-Apr-21 | Dead | scrap metal vendor |
Worker injuries
At least six workers in April lost their lives due to work incidents in various cities of Iran and one died in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Prison sentences
In April, at least six Kurdish civilians and activists were condemned to sentences varying from one year to life sentence. Of these people, Arsalan Khodkam’s sentence was reduced from death penalty to life sentence. He was previously sentenced to death on charges of “enmity against God” and “espionage for the KDPI”.
| Name | Charged with | Sentence |
| Arastou Molla-Rahimi | Membership in the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) and propaganda against the state | 38 months and two days in prison |
| Javanmir Moradi | Propaganda against the state | One years in prison |
| Ayoub Salakhori | Insulting the [supreme] leadership, propaganda against the state, publishing lies | 11 years in prison |
| Jalal Namdari | Acting against national security, attending Aban (November 2019) protests | 8 years in prison |
| Saeid Khaledi | Acting against national security, propaganda against the state | 5 years in prison |
| Arsalan Khodkam | Enmity against God, espionage for the KDPI | Death penalty reduced to life sentence |
