Monthly Report by Hengaw: 20 Femicides, One Execution, and Dozens of Arrests and Imprisonment of Women in Iran

The human rights organization "Hengaw" reported that in the last month (February 2024), at least one woman was "executed" in the prisons of the Islamic Republic, 9 women activists were "arrested," and 9 women activists were sentenced to "imprisonment" by the Iranian judiciary. According to the Hengaw report, in addition to these cases, at least 20 instances of "femicide" were recorded in various cities across Iran last month. The report indicates that on January 21, 2024, the execution of a 41-year-old woman from Tabriz named Hajar Atabaki, who had previously been sentenced to death for drug-related offenses, was carried out in Qazvin Central Prison. The execution of this prisoner was reported about a month later in February. According to the sixteenth "Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran for 2023," published by the Iran Human Rights organization in Paris on Tuesday, March 5, the Islamic Republic ranks first in the world for executing women. Meanwhile, Hengaw noted that during February 2024, at least "9 women activists" and "one queer activist" were arrested in various cities of Iran. Among the arrested women are a student and a journalist. "7 individuals" among the detainees were also arrested to serve their sentences. The report states that Nasrin Hosseini (Bojnourd), Zhila Hajbari (Marivan), A. Naroui (Zahedan), Noushin Mesbah (Mashhad), Mina Karami (Shiraz), Roya Sabat (Shiraz), Raoufa Mirbagheri (Ramser), Nahid Khodajoo (Tehran), and Sarina Jahani (Shiraz) were arrested last month. Additionally, Ilham Choubdar, a queer activist from Urmia, was also arrested to serve her sentence and transferred to the central prison of that city. The news agency Hrana reported on March 2 that a court session was held to address the charges against "12 women’s rights activists" from Gilan on March 1 in the third branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Rasht. According to the statistics recorded by the Hengaw human rights organization, during February 2024, at least "9 women activists" were also sentenced to "imprisonment" in various cities of Iran. According to this report, these 9 activists were collectively sentenced to 44 years of imprisonment by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Hengaw reported that at least "20 women" were killed in various cities of Iran over the course of a month, with "16 cases" committed by close individuals, including husbands, ex-husbands, fathers, or brothers. According to this report, "9 women" were killed by their husbands and ex-husbands, "7 women" were killed by close family members, and "4 women" were killed by other individuals. Mina Khani, a human rights activist residing in Germany, told "Voice of America" that the Islamic Republic has created the environment for femicide in Iran, but the murders also have "social roots."