Security forces arrested Kurdish civilian Sajjad Malekshahi in Qorveh, Kurdistan Province, on the evening of 12 February, after he posted a video criticising the upcoming elections in Iran.
The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned that security forces arrested Malekshahi without a warrant during a raid on his home and subsequently transferred him to an undisclosed location.
In a video circulated on social media, Malekshahi expressed his concerns about the current state of the country and called for a boycott of the upcoming elections.
This incident follows a similar case on 28 January, when Bahman Naderi, a Kurdish civilian from Kermanshah, Kermanshah Province, was charged with “propaganda against the state” after being summoned to the Fourth Branch of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in Kermanshah for calling for a boycott of the elections on social media.
After a few hours of detention, Naderi was released on bail of 4 billion rials – nearly 8,000 USD.
