During the past few days, the three-months and one-day imprisonment sentence of a member of the Kurdistan Teachers’ Trade Association was suspended by the Kurdistan Regional Court of Appeals. “Taher Ghaderzadeh, a member of the Kurdistan Teachers’ Trade Association, was summoned to Saqez court in March 2015 on charges of disturbing public opinion and launching illegal gatherings” after arranging several gatherings in Saqez,” an informed…
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Mehdi Tavakoli, a photographer from Sanandaj, was recently sentenced to one year of punitive imprisonment and one year of suspended imprisonment by Branch One of the Revolutionary Court of Sanandaj on charges of acting against national security. According to the information obtained by Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN), Mehdi Tavakoli, one of the well-known Kurdish photographers was sentenced to one year of imprisonment and one…
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On Tuesday, July 4, security forces arrested Salahedin Khadiv (journalist and Civil activist) in Mahabad and transferred him to an unknown location. His family’s persistent enquiries about the reason for his arrest and whereabouts have not been answered yet. “At 1 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4, the security forces searched Dr.Khadiv’s pharmacy in Mahabad and confiscated a number of his personal belongings before arresting him”,…
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During the past few days, Kurdish security forces known as Asayesh detained a Kurdish activist in Penjwein district of Kurdistan. This former Kurdish prisoner, who is also a member of the Kurdistan Human Rights Association (KMMK), was transferred to a detention centre in Sulaymaniyah. “At 11 a.m. on Monday, July 3, Asayish Forces went to Adnan Rashidi’s house and transferred him to Asayish office under…
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The Iranian authorities have interrogated three Kurdish civil society activists for having participated in an event held to remember victims of a chemical attack in the border town of Sardasht on 28 June. Two of the Kurdish activists, Mostafa Azizpour and Salahedin Khezri, were interrogated and threatened not to take part in such events. The other activist, Farhad Lotfi, had walked from the Kurdish town of…
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On Thursday Evening 15th June, Police forces have attacked and beaten up the protesting laid off workers and their families at Aq-Darreh Gold mine in Takab in West Azarbaijan Province and 13 villagers were injured. They were protesting against unemployment and the employment of non-residents of the village. According to reports received by the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, On Thursday Evening, a number of villagers…
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Kurdistan Human Rights Network (June 6 2017): Over the past few days, all versions of the Kurdish language instruction book (in Kurmanji) has been banned by the Intelligence Service in Khorasan Razavi province, despite having permission from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Alireza Sepahi Laeen, a Kurdish known journalists and authors of Northern Khorasan in an open letter said ban of this book is…
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During the last few days, websites close to the Gilan-e Gharb Revolutionary Guards reported the arrests and dismantling of a virtual counter-revolution team. But on Sunday, the prosecutor of the city, has denied the news of the arrest of the activists in social networks. A local source told the Kurdistan Human Rights Network(KHRN), on Wednesday 4 May, seven Cyberspace activists of telegram named Javad Akbari, Meghdad…
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A Kurdish citizen, Rashid Sharafian from Palangan village (Kurdistan, Iran), has been in temporary detention in the Sanandaj Intelligence detention centre since his arrest in March 2017. Rashid Sharafian a member of the committee to organise the Nowruz gathering in Palangan village have been arrested on 24 march 2017 by security forces in Sanandaj. He was able to contact his family a few times and…
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In its monthly reports, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) highlights cases of human rights violations in Kurdistan and violations of the rights of Kurdish civilians in different regions and cities across Iran.
This report includes all cases recorded and reported by KHRN from across Iran through its own sources and verification mechanisms from 1 August to 31 August.
The restrictive environment for independent human rights organisations in Iran, coupled with the pressures faced by individuals subjected to human rights violations and their families, make it difficult to publish accurate and comprehensive reports.
It is therefore important to note that the statistics and information presented in this report do not cover all cases of human rights violations. This report is the result of examining news and reports published by the KHRN and fact-checking of reports published by other human rights organisations and news websites.
Executions
According to KHRN’s findings, Iran executed at least 14 prisoners in August, including Reza Rasaei, a 35-year-old Kurdish Yarsani civilian who was arrested during the Women, Life, Freedom anti-government uprising.
The political prisoner was executed on 6 August and his family and lawyer were not informed in advance, nor was he allowed a final meeting with his family.
The remaining 13 prisoners were executed on drug or murder charges.
*Explanation: The KHRN, recognizing the fundamental right to life, publishes and records news and execution statistics without regard to the ethnic background of individuals and the location of the execution. All cases reported to the organisation by credible sources are published after thorough fact-checking.
Femicide
On 26 August, an 18-year-old woman, Mobina Zeynivand, was killed by her father in the village of Gorz-e Langar in Darreh Shahr, Ilam Province.
Zeynivand’s 56-year-old father killed his daughter and surrendered to the judicial authorities, citing “family disputes” as the reason for the murder. She was reportedly killed for trying to marry the person she loved.
Kolbars and tradesmen
In August, at least two kolbars were killed and nine injured by gunfire from Iranian border and security forces.
Additionally, one kolbar was injured due to falling from border heights in Marivan, Kurdistan Province.
Detentions and arrests
Over the past month, Iranian forces arrested at least 17 individuals, including activists and religious figures.
At least four of the detained civilians were sent to Naqadeh, Orumiyeh, Mahabad and Bukan prisons to serve sentences.
Sentences
In August, Iranian courts sentenced at least five people to prison terms ranging from six months to eight years and 10 months.