Iranian authorities have reportedly arrested on false charges, threatened, or harassed the family members of dozens of people killed, executed, or imprisoned during the protests over the last two years, Human Rights Watch said today. Two years after the outbreak of the 2022 "Woman, Life, Freedom" protests, Iranian authorities continue to silence and punish family members demanding accountability for violations against their loved ones.
BBC Persian reported on August 16, 2024, that the Nazarabad criminal court in Alborz province in northern Iran sentenced Mashallah Karami to 8 years and 10 months in prison on charges of "participation in money laundering" and "obtaining property through illegitimate means." Karami's son, Mohammad Mehdi Karami, was executed on January 7, 2023, for participating in the protests. His father is also facing a fine and the confiscation of his assets as part of his sentence. Ali Sharifzadeh Ardakani, his lawyer, said in an interview with Shargh Daily newspaper that the funds and assets were public donations to support Karami, though none of the donors had sued for repayment.
"Iranian authorities are brutalizing people twice over; executing or killing a family member and then arresting their loved ones for demanding accountability," said Nahid Naghshbandi, acting Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch. "The Iran judiciary should urgently free unlawfully detained family members and ensure fair trials and a transparent judicial process for anyone accused of a crime."
Haalvsh, a Baluchi human rights group, reported on August 27 that the Special Court for Minors in Razavi Khorasan province issued an eight-month prison sentence for Faramarz Abil Barahoui, the 15-year-old brother of Ismail Abil Barahoui, a victim of the "Bloody Friday" crackdown on protesters in Zahedan. On August 4, 2023, Haalvsh reported that Faramarz Barahoui was arrested after he visited his brother's grave.
The Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported that on September 3, security agents raided the home of the family of Zanyar Aboubakri, who was shot and killed during the "Woman, Life, Freedom" protests in Mahabad on October 27, 2022, and arrested his 16-year-old brother, Ramyer.
Also on September 3, security forces raided the home of Siavash Soltani, the son of Kobri Sheikha Saqqaa, who was killed in the October 2022 protests in Mahabad, and violently arrested Soltani without a warrant, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported.
Security forces arrested Raana Kourkour in her home in Pakdasht on July 4 after she criticized the conduct of the presidential elections and condemned the government for sentencing her brother Abbas (Mojahed) Kourkour to death on charges of "enmity against God" and "corruption on earth," the Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The authorities released her on August 10. The Supreme Court upheld her brother's sentence in December 2023.
Security forces arrested Ahmad Hasanzadeh and his daughter Solmaz Hasanzadeh on July 30 as they commemorated the birthday of Ahmad's son, Mohammad Hasanzadeh, who was shot and killed during the 2022 protests, Kurdpa human rights organization reported. Ahmad was released on bail the next day, but Solmaz was transferred to Urmia Prison, where she began a hunger strike on August 6 to protest her continued detention.
Solmaz and her father had previously been summoned for interrogation at the Bukan Intelligence Office on September 5, 2023. She was also arrested by security forces at a checkpoint between Bukan and Saqqez on September 27, 2023, but was released shortly after.
Kurdpa reported on August 29 that Hassan Amini, whose brother Mohammad was killed during the 2022 protests, had been released from Sanandaj Prison under electronic monitoring. The Bukan Criminal Court Branch 101 had sentenced Amini on July 5, 2023, to six and a half months in prison and 40 lashes for "disturbing public order." Amini had been arrested on June 9, 2023, along with families of other victims, after attending a ceremony for those killed during the 2022 protests at the cemeteries in Saqqez and Bukan.
Iranian authorities have a long track record of pressuring families whose loved ones were killed by security forces or executed by Iranian courts. This includes Iranian authorities threatening and pressuring families of victims from the 2019 protests, as well as families of those killed on Flight PS752, a Ukrainian Airlines flight shot down by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard in 2020, to deter Iranian authorities from pursuing accountability.
"It is critically important for governments engaging with Iran to publicly condemn these appalling injustices against people whose loved ones have already faced serious violations by Iran's brutal government," Naghshbandi said.
