Kurdish political prisoner Shahin Gallehdar took his own life today due to the pressure and torture by the Ministry of Intelligence, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned. Gallehdar, 50, from the village of Haki in Orumiyeh, West Azerbaijan Province, was serving a two-year sentence in Orumiyeh Central Prison. The prisoner hanged himself in the political and religious prisoners’ ward today after being transferred several…
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Mohammad Khodkam, a prisoner from Bukan, West Azerbaijan Province, is in critical condition as he continues his hunger strike in protest at a harsh prison sentence and fine imposed on him last December. The situation has prompted warnings from prison doctors about the dire state of his health. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned that Khodkam, who began his hunger strike on 23…
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The Fifth Branch of the Evin Prosecutor’s Office has charged Pakhshan Azizi, a Kurdish activist and former political prisoner, with “membership of the country’s opposition groups” after she spent six months in detention. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned that after Azizi’s interrogation in recent weeks, the case has been transferred to Branch 26 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran, headed by…
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The Fifth Branch of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in Tehran has charged Wrisha Moradi, a member of the East Kurdistan Free Women Society (KJAR) with the organisational code name of Jwana Sna, in recent weeks, with “armed insurrection” (baghi), which carries the death penalty. Moradi, who was arrested more than six months ago, is accused of being a member of the Kurdistan Free…
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Hadi Rostami, a prisoner sentenced to amputation, began a dry hunger strike after being severely beaten by prison officials and transferred to solitary confinement in Orumiyeh Central Prison on 5 February. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned that a delegation led by the Chief Justice of West Azerbaijan Province and several judges from Orumiyeh visited the prison to address the prisoners’ concerns, and…
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Kurdish political prisoner Keyhan Mokarram, who is currently serving the fifth year of his five-year sentence in an open prison in Orumiyeh, West Azerbaijan Province, has been denied the right to an end-of-sentence furlough due to opposition from officials in the Ministry of Intelligence. The intelligence authorities had previously rejected his request for conditional release, making any pre-release freedom conditional on his cooperation with security…
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Kurdish labour activist Osman Esmaeili, who has been serving a 16-month sentence in Saqqez Prison in Kurdistan Province since November 2023, is suffering from an inguinal hernia and has been denied urgent surgery, raising serious concerns about his health. Despite being transferred to an outside medical facility in January due to his deteriorating condition, the authorities have yet to provide the urgently needed surgery, the…
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Kurdish political prisoners Motalleb Ahmadian and Sakineh Parvaneh have begun hunger strikes in protest at the recent execution of four Kurdish political prisoners in Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned that Ahmadian began his hunger strike on 29 January, the same day as the execution of Pezhman Fatehi, Mohammad Faramarzi, Vafa Azarbar and Mohsen Mazloum. Despite initially planning a…
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The authorities today executed prisoner Ali Rajabian in Karaj Central Penitentiary in Alborz Province for drug-related offences. Rajabian, who was imprisoned for drug trafficking, was transferred to solitary confinement for execution on 28 January. The 50-year-old man, from Kuhdasht in Lorestan Province was arrested about four years ago and sentenced to death on drug-related charges. *Further clarification: Sources close to Rajabian’s family had stated that he was…
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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 April to 30 April.
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 six prisoners in April, four on drug-related charges and two for “premeditated murder”.
The executions took place in prisons in Orumiyeh, Hamadan, Kerman, Karaj, Saqqez, and Ardabil.
*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.
Landmine explosions
In the past month, landmine explosions killed a civilian in Gilan-e Gharb and injured another in Saqqez.
Kolbars and tradesmen
During this period, at least four kolbars were shot dead by Iranian border guards and 22 kolbars were injured.
Of the injured, 18 were shot by Iranian border guards, two fell from heights at the border, one was beaten and one was injured during the pursuit of the border guards.
Detentions and arrests
Throughout April, Iranian forces arrested at least 45 civilians, including eight activists, a journalist, and a former political prisoner.
At least 13 of the detained civilians were sent to prisons in Oshnavieh and Naqadeh to serve prison sentences.
Sentences
In the past month, Iranian courts have sentenced at least 10 people to punishments ranging from three months to 10 years in prison.
Among those sentenced was Kurdish rapper Saman Yasin, who was sentenced to five years of exile imprisonment in Babak, Kerman Province, by the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran after one year and seven months of detention.