Seven Kurdish civilians and activists from Saqqez, Kurdistan Province, have been collectively sentenced to imprisonment, flogging, and additional penalties. The sentence was handed down by Branch 105 of the Saqqez Criminal Court Two, presided over by Judge Javad Mostafaei.
The individuals, including Safa Aeli, the uncle of Jina Amini, Hiva Jahani, Sherko (Khaled) Hejazi, Hiva Tataei, Mohammad Azad Amini, Samira Ahmadi, and Omid Moghaddas, were arrested in September 2023, on the eve of the Women Life Freedom uprising, and were temporarily released on bail after completing the interrogation process.
This is not the first time these activists have faced legal action. Previously, in another joint case, they were sentenced by Branch One of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Saqqez receiving penalties ranging from imprisonment to fines and additional penalties.
The criminal court session for these individuals took place on 4 February, and the verdicts were officially notified to each of them on 6 February.
Safa Aeli was sentenced to seven months and 16 days imprisonment and 74 lashes for “procuring tools to commit crimes to disturb public order” and an additional 13 months and 17 days imprisonment for “disturbing public opinion by spreading falsehoods in virtual space”.
The court commuted Aeli’s sentence to free public service. This includes providing unpaid public services, such as paying for and taking underprivileged children to amusement parks under the supervision of the relevant authorities for three hours a day for one year, as well as providing clothes, bags and school shoes to twenty orphaned female primary school students identified by the Saqqez Relief and Welfare Committee.
The remaining co-defendants were sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment and 70 lashes each for “procuring tools to commit crimes to disturb public order”.
The court converted their prison sentences into free public service, similar to Aeli’s, and suspended the lashes for two years.
