Since the ceasefire, the repression of opponents has intensified, and cases of rape and sexual assault against detained women have increased significantly. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images) Iranian Women Describe Sexual Abuse in Regime Detention Centers Steven Ganot 04/26/2026 Omid Habibinia’s report is a grim dispatch from inside Iran’s machinery of repression, where women, protesters, dissidents, minorities, and political prisoners are facing what activists describe as a widening campaign of sexual abuse, executions, forced confessions, disappearances, and intimidation.
The article centers on exclusive testimony obtained by The Media Line from women who say they were sexually assaulted or abused in detention. One recently released protester described being arrested in a nighttime raid, held with other women in cramped conditions, interrogated without formal charges beyond protest activity, and raped with a baton after refusing to confess to ties with opposition groups. Her account is part of a broader pattern reported by activists and human rights groups: women and girls detained by the Islamic Republic are increasingly vulnerable to sexual violence, threats, and psychological torture.
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Habibinia also follows the case of Ahmad Khodaei, a protester who reportedly attempted suicide after saying security agents sent him messages claiming they had sexually violated the body of his slain wife, Saleheh Akbari. Authorities denied the allegations, but local human rights activists say Akbari was killed by security forces and that Khodaei was later detained and released on bail.
The crackdown extends beyond women protesters. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi is said to be at serious risk in prison, while Baha’is, Kurds, Baloch, labor activists, and leftist detainees face arrests, denial of medical care, and death sentences. The article says at least 15 opponents have been publicly executed recently, while rights groups warn the real toll may be higher.
The wider picture is one of a regime using war, internet shutdowns, and national security charges to tighten its grip. President Donald Trump has publicly called for the release of eight women reportedly facing execution, including Bita Hemmati, while Iran’s judiciary has denied some of the reported sentences.
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