Iran has sentenced to death 27-year-old Kurdish prisoner from Orumiyeh Shahin Vasaf on charges of espionage for Israel, a reliable source told Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN). This is the first time a credible source confirms his death sentence, issued on 2 October 2023.

Shahin Vasaf, along with another Kurdish citizen Naser Vasaf, was detained by the intelligence forces in Orumiyeh on 21 September 2022.

They were taken to the city’s intelligence detention facility, where both endured physical and psychological torture for months to extract from them forced confessions to admit the charges of spying for Israel, the source said.

They were then taken to Orumiyeh Central Prison after interrogation had ended and their trial was held without the presence of a defence lawyer.

The Branch Three of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Court of Oroumiyeh had handed down the death penalty, the source said.

Meanwhile, Naser Vasaf was released from prison in recent weeks after more than a year in detention.