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…
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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…
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The whereabouts and fate of Wrisha 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)…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has prepared this report on the occasion of 8 March, International Women’s Day, to point to cases of suicide, femicide, arrest, and imprisonment of Kurdish women activists from 8 March 2021 to 8 March 2022 in Iran. Suicides Since last International Women’s Day, at least 78 women and young girls committed suicide in different parts of Iranian Kurdistan and lost…
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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 March to 31 March.
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 four prisoner in March for “premeditated murder”.
Two of the prisoners were executed in Mahabad Prison, in West Azerbaijan Province, and two in Ilam Central Prison.
*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
In the first half of March, three women were killed by their male family members in Orumiyeh and Kermanshah.
Landmine explosions
In March, landmine explosions resulted in injuries to four people, including two kolbars, in Mehran in Ilam Province, Paveh in Kermanshah Province, and Marivan in Kurdistan Province.
Kolbars and tradesmen
In March, at least five kolbars were shot dead by Iranian border guards, two died of frostbite, two died as a result of falling from the border heights, one was tortured to death by Iranian security forces, one died of a heart attack, one died in a road accident and another died as a result of the overturning of a car chased by police.
A total of 60 kolbars were injured during this period. Of these, 38 were shot by Iranian border guards, nine fell from heights at the border, four were injured in landmine explosions, three were beaten by border guards, two were beaten by Iraqi border guards, two were injured in road accidents, one was injured by stones thrown by border guards, and one was injured in a car that fell from heights at the border.
The identities of three of the kolbars injured in falls from border heights remain unknown and are therefore not included in the table in this report.
Detentions and arrests
Throughout March, Iranian forces arrested at least 20 civilians, including a child and two artists.
At least four of the detained civilians were sent to prisons in Marivan, Saqqez, Naqadeh, and Ilam to serve prison sentences.
Sentences
In the past month, Iranian courts have sentenced at least four people to punishments ranging from three months to 13 years in prison.
Security forces wound two young men
On 21 March, security forces attacked a group of young people in Kermanshah, Kermanshah Province, for playing music and having fun. As a result of the forces’ shooting, two Kurdish youths, Mohammad Ahmadian and Arman Basiri, were seriously injured in the leg.
The incident took place in the Eastern Park near the historical site of Tagh-e Bostan.