Center for Human Rights in Iran

20/08/2026

These stories reflect the broader pattern of human rights issues in the Iran that demand immediate global attention.

Swipe to read about each case.

1️⃣ Another January Protester Sentenced to Death
2️⃣ 27th Protester Arrested During January Protests Executed
3️⃣ Prominent Iranian Photojournalist Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison
4️⃣ Another Baha’i Citizen Sentenced to Prison
5️⃣ Prominent Civil Rights Activist Sentenced to Eight Months in Prison
6️⃣ Two Student Activists Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison
7️⃣ Woman Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Sharing Information With Foreign Media
8️⃣ Former Political Prisoner Re-Arrested After Retirees’ Protest
9️⃣ Student Arrested During January Protests Sentenced to Prison, Lashes and Exile
🔟 Life Sentences of Three Political Prisoners Reduced to 25 Years

12/08/2026

In an extraordinary escalation of post-protest repression, Iranian authorities have sentenced dozens of protesters to death in group prosecutions that violate even the most basic international standards of due process and fair trial rights.

The use of group prosecutions is at the heart of a rapidly emerging state strategy to punish participants in the January 2026 protests and deter future protests.

In cases examined by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), dozens of defendants have now been prosecuted collectively rather than individually, denied meaningful access to independent legal counsel and case files, and subjected to torture and coercion to obtain forced “confessions.”

Courts have refused to examine evidence favorable to defendants while relying on disputed testimony and other evidence obtained under coercive circumstances. The result is a system designed to produce convictions and ex*****ons.

Read CHRI's latest report ⬇️

Protesters are being tried collectively, in fast-tracked prosecutions that deny defendants individual trials and due process and end in death sentences and ex*****ons August 12, 2026 — In an extraordinary escalation of post-protest repression, Iranian authorities have sentenced dozens of protester...

11/08/2026

Iran's Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence against Rasoul Rezaei, a 28-year-old resident of Fariman who was arrested during the January 2026 nationwide protests and is currently imprisoned in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad.

Rezaei is the father of two children, ages two and five. Before his arrest, he worked as a street vendor to support his family.

Rezaei was previously sentenced to death by a branch of the Mashhad Revolutionary Court on the charge of "moharebeh” (enmity against God). No information is currently available regarding the specific conduct cited by the court as the basis for the charge.

Marzieh Mohebi, a legal expert familiar with the case, confirmed Rezaei’s death sentence to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA). She said security forces arrested him in Fariman on January 9, 2026, and that he has since been denied access to a lawyer of his choosing, as well as telephone calls and family visits.

06/08/2026

Since crushing the nationwide January 2026 protests through mass killings and widespread repression, Iranian authorities have launched a systematic campaign against one of the country’s most influential civic groups: teachers.

Across Iran, as part of the state’s broader effort to crush all internal dissent in the country, teachers and teachers’ union activists have been arrested, forcibly disappeared, prosecuted under national security charges, imprisoned, and subjected to solitary confinement and denial of medical care in an effort to silence independent organizing.

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Full report linked in our bio.

02/08/2026

At dawn on August 1, 2026, 19-year-old Arvin Kheirkhahan, arrested during the January 2026 protests, was executed in Shahrud Prison after being sentenced to death on charges of “enmity against God."

According to HRANA, Kheirkhahan was executed at approximately 4 a.m. His family was informed that they must collect his body at 3 a.m. on Sunday and hold his burial ceremony at 5 a.m.

Kheirkhahan was sentenced to death by Branch 1 of the Shahrud Revolutionary Court. The Supreme Court upheld the verdict. Little information is available about his case.

🔸 CHRI has documented widespread due process violations in protest-related capital cases, including incommunicado detention, denial of access to independent lawyers, torture-tainted forced confessions, and fast-tracked sham trials.

🔸 Independent lawyers who have challenged due process violations and the authorities' handling of protest cases have themselves been subjected to arrest, interrogation, and other forms of harassment.

🚨 Given the widespread and systematic due process violations in capital cases, all ex*****ons in Iran must be halted immediately. CHRI calls on the international community, including the UN and governments worldwide, to urgently press the Iranian authorities to impose an immediate moratorium on ex*****ons.

28/07/2026

In a gruesome display of state violence, Iranian authorities publicly hanged two young protesters at dawn on July 28, 2026, in Alikhani Square in Esfahan.

Abolfazl Sepahi, 23, and Amirhossein Safari, 27, were arrested during protests in Esfahan on January 8, 2026, and sentenced to death following a grossly unfair mass trial involving dozens of protesters on allegations such as possessing weapons, damaging public property, arson, and the killing of four police agents.

Their arrests and proceedings were marred by serious due process violations, including the denial of access to independent lawyers and the use of forced “confessions” as evidence.

Eight other defendants in the same case remain at imminent risk of ex*****on, amid reports that some have been summoned for final visits with their families, signaling that ex*****ons may be imminent.

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27/07/2026

The hunger strike by prisoners in Unit 2 of Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj has entered its third consecutive week as inmates protest Iran’s escalating use of the death penalty.

The strike began on July 13, 2026, after six prisoners sentenced to death on drug-related charges were transferred to solitary confinement ahead of their ex*****ons. Prisoners responded by staging a sit-in, refusing food, and, in several cases, sewing their lips shut in protest.

In addition to seeking to save the lives of the six prisoners, the hunger strikers are demanding implementation of a legal amendment that would commute their death sentences to prison terms. They have appealed to the international community to amplify their voices and pressure Iranian authorities to halt the ex*****ons.

These prisoners were sentenced to death on drug-related charges. Under international law, the death penalty may not be imposed for drug offenses, which do not meet the “most serious crimes” threshold.

Yet Iran remains one of the world’s leading ex*****oners, and the overwhelming majority of its ex*****ons continue to be carried out for drug-related offenses.

Videos smuggled out of the prison at great personal risk show the sit-in and the deteriorating condition of several hunger strikers. Prison authorities have reportedly responded by installing signal-jamming devices to prevent prisoners from sending images and videos outside the prison.

On the seventh day of the strike, families of death row prisoners gathered outside Ghezel Hesar Prison to demand an end to ex*****ons, but security forces violently dispersed the protest.

The protest comes alongside the “No to Ex*****on Tuesdays” campaign, a prisoner-led weekly hunger strike that has continued for more than two years across 59 prisons in Iran.

For many prisoners, a hunger strike is their last remaining means of making their voices heard. Iranian authorities bear full responsibility for the health and safety of the striking prisoners.

24/07/2026

On July 23, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran urgently called on Iranian authorities to immediately halt all ex*****ons, including those in connection with the protests, and establish a moratorium on the use of the death penalty.

The Mission urged authorities to stop the imminent ex*****on of 10 young men sentenced to death over their alleged involvement in the January 8 protests in Isfahan.

The appeal comes after the ex*****on of Erfan Esfandiari (18) and Gol Mohammad Mohammadi (23) on July 19. According to credible reports, the families of at least two of the remaining prisoners have already been summoned for final visits, raising fears that more ex*****ons are imminent.

The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran was established by the Human Rights Council in November 2022 to investigate human rights violations related to the 2022 protests. In January 2026, its mandate was extended for two years to also investigate serious violations linked to the protests that began on December 28, 2025, and the armed conflict that started on February 28, 2026.

23/07/2026

According to information obtained by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), Ahad Shokouhian, a 38-year-old flower market worker and the sole breadwinner for his family, has been sentenced to death three times in connection with Iran's January 2026 protests.

Despite serious due process violations, including denial of access to an independent lawyer and the court's disregard for exculpatory evidence, his death sentence has been upheld, placing him at imminent risk of ex*****on.

CHRI has learned that twelve other defendants in the same case have also been sentenced to one or more death sentences, raising grave concerns over mass death penalty convictions following fundamentally unfair trials.

Shokouhian was arrested on January 15, 2026, in Pakdasht, Tehran Province. According to information received by CHRI, he has been held in Ghezel Hesar Prison since late June 2026. He was sentenced to death three times by Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, known for giving political prisoners severe sentences.

21/07/2026

Lasting, positive change in Iran will ultimately come from the Iranian people themselves. So how can the international community support the Iranian people’s fight for freedom and strengthen civil society from within?

Karen Kramer, Deputy Director of the Center for Human Rights, joined a panel hosted by Middle East Institute to explore the ongoing human rights crisis in Iran, the profound impact it has on people’s daily lives, and the practical steps governments and the international community can take to support civil society and promote human rights in Iran.

Watch the full panel: https://www.youtube.com/live/C7UW8gXZKbA?si=EfKUr4UIdyPJKoBj