Arrest

Azad Khadem, a Kurdish teacher from Saqqez, Kurdistan Province, was arrested by security forces in the city on 25 November 2024.

Defendant’s Rights

He was arrested without a warrant and has since been denied family visits and access to legal representation.

Despite his family’s repeated attempts to obtain information about his fate, security and judicial authorities have refused to provide any clarification regarding his situation.

Current Status

Khadem is being held in the Ministry of Intelligence detention centre in Sanandaj, Kurdistan Province.

Additional Information

On 4 December 2024, the Kurdistan Teachers’ Trade Association (Saqqez and Ziviyeh) issued a statement regarding the arrests of Azad Khadem and Abdullah Karim-Golan and said: “As you are aware, it has been nearly ten days since the ambiguous arrest of Mr. Azad Khadem and Mr. Abdullah Karim-Golan, both secondary school teachers in Saqqez. Despite repeated inquiries from their families and associates, no accurate information about their whereabouts has been made available, nor have the detaining authorities or judicial bodies provided a satisfactory response to their families. During this time, the detainees have been deprived of proper and regular contact with their families, a fundamental right of every individual. They have only been allowed brief phone calls to inquire about their well-being, and even their families lack precise information about their loved ones’ location.”