Soheyla Motaei, a Kurdish civil rights activist and former political prisoner from Dehgolan, Kurdistan Province, was arrested twice during the “Women, Life, Freedom” uprising and sentenced to a total of 80 months’ imprisonment.

She was released from Sanandaj Women’s Prison (Juvenile Detention Centre) after several months under a judiciary amnesty.

Arrest

Motaei was arrested by Ministry of Intelligence forces on 10 March 2025 after taking part in an International Women’s Day gathering in Sanandaj, Kurdistan Province, and was released on bail of 10 billion rials a week later.

During her detention, she was denied family visits and access to legal representation.

Judicial Process

In June 2025, Branch 102 of Dehgolan Criminal Court Two sentenced Motaei to three months’ imprisonment and three years’ suspended imprisonment on charges of “propaganda activities in favour of groups or organisations opposed to the Islamic Republic”.

In December 2025, in a separate case, Dehgolan Criminal Court sentenced her to six months’ imprisonment and three years’ suspended imprisonment on charges of “spreading falsehoods”.

Current Status

On 13 June 2026, Motaei was arrested after being summoned to the Enforcement of Judgements Office of the Dehgolan Judiciary to begin serving her prison sentence and was transferred to Sanandaj Women’s Prison.

Notes:

1. Women, Life, Freedom Uprising: Jina Amini (Mahsa Amini), a 21-year-old Kurdish woman from Saqqez, Kurdistan Province, was arrested on a street in Tehran on 13 September 2022 by the morality police because of the way she was dressed. Shortly after her arrest, she was transferred to Kasra Hospital in Tehran with head injuries and symptoms of brain death, and passed away three days later on 16 September 2022. The government’s killing of Jina sparked unprecedented anti-government protests, which began with a large turnout at her funeral at Aichi Cemetery in Saqqez and quickly spread to many cities across Iran. These widespread protests against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which lasted for several months, resulted in at least 527 protesters being killed and thousands injured and arrested. The protests are known for their central slogan of “Women, Life, Freedom” (Kurdish: Jin, Jiyan, Azadi).

2. Article 500 of the Islamic Penal Code: “Anyone who engages in propaganda activities against the Islamic Republic of Iran or in favour of groups and organisations opposing the state, in any manner, shall be sentenced to imprisonment for a period of three months to one year.”

3. Article 698 of the Islamic Penal Code: “Anyone who, with the intent to harm another person, disturb public opinion, or mislead official authorities, makes false statements or attributes actions contrary to the truth, either directly or indirectly, to an individual or legal entity, whether in a letter, complaint, correspondence, petition, report, or by distributing any kind of printed or handwritten materials, whether signed or unsigned, shall be sentenced to imprisonment from two months to two years or up to 74 lashes, regardless of whether the falsehood causes material or non-material harm to others. In addition to these penalties, if possible, the person’s reputation must be restored.”