Kurdistan Human Rights Network

The International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, 17 May, serves as a reminder of the history of oppression and violence faced by queer individuals in many societies and countries, where their gender identity and sexual orientation have been pathologised and criminalised. It also commemorates the struggle and resistance of queer people to destigmatise and decriminalise their identities and orientations, fighting for equal rights. In…

A group of retired employees of the Telecommunication Company of Iran took to the streets in Kermanshah, Kermanshah Province, today to demonstrate their dissatisfaction with their living conditions and to press for the resolution of various issues. The protests were not limited to Kermanshah, as similar demonstrations by retired telecom workers took place simultaneously in several cities across the country. The main demands of the pensioners…

Women’s rights activist and former political prisoner Zeynab Bayazidi has been awarded the 2023 Daniele Po International Prize. The award ceremony took place on 21 October in Pieve Di Cento, Bologna, Italy, and was attended by local and provincial authorities and representatives of civil society. In her speech, Bayazidi paid tribute to the struggle and resistance of Zeynab Jalalian, the only female political prisoner sentenced to…

The whereabouts and fate of Verisheh Moradi, a member of the East Kurdistan Free Women Society (KJAR) with the organisational code name of Jwana Sna, who was arrested by security forces in Sanandaj, Kurdistan Province, almost two months ago, remains unknown. Moradi was beaten and arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence at the entrance to Sanandaj on 1 August, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN)…

Zaniar (Matin) Tondro, a 17-year-old student who was shot by Iranian forces during the recent anti-government protests in Piranshahr, West Azerbaijan province, on 27 October 2022, has lost sight of one of his eyes. Hamzeh Tondro, the young man’s father, spoke to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) about his son’s situation and said: “My son was first wounded on 20 September 2022, on the…

Detained Kurdish writer Mozhgan Kavousi was tried on 20 December over a series of serious charges, one of which may carry a death penalty verdict.  The most serious charges against her was “spreading corruption on earth” (efsad-e fel arz), for which a death penalty is a possible verdict under the laws of the the Islamic Republic of Iran. She is a former political prisoner released in January…

A 17-year-old child named Mobin Feizi, who was severely injured by shotgun pellets that hit his head during the public protests in Kamyaran, Kurdistan province, on 15 November, has lost his ability to move an arm and a leg after undergoing two surgeries. On 15 November, the forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) shot Feyzi in the head with a shotgun in one…

Relatives of the 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa(Zhina) Amini, who is in a coma after being arrested and beaten by the Iranian morality police, spoke to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) about the continuation of her worrying situation. The relatives said that Amini’s family were shocked by what happened to their daughter and that they were exposed to intense pressure and threats from security…

The Islamic Revolutionary Court in Orumiyeh, West Azerbaijan province, has sentenced an activist of the LGBTI and queer rights named Zahra Sedighi-Hamadani (Sareh) and another civilian named Elham Choubdar to the death penalty. The court charged them with “spreading corruption on earth” (fasad fil-arz) by allegedly “promoting homosexuality” and “forming corruption and prostitution gangs”. The two prisoners were informed of the sentence in the women’s ward…