Six Protesters Transferred to Naqdeh Prison in Piranshahr

Six detainees from the nationwide protests of 2022 in Piranshahr, West Azerbaijan province, who have been sentenced to a total of over 50 years in prison, were transferred to Naqdeh Prison on Wednesday, April 24. According to the human rights organization Hengaw, 30-year-old Diako Ebrahimi and 21-year-old Ehsan Golabi have each been sentenced to 14 years in prison on charges of 'membership in the Democratic Party, conspiracy and gathering against national security, propaganda against the regime, and filming government facilities,' of which 5 years is enforceable. Additionally, 23-year-old Ismail Tajla, 23-year-old Alireza Mohammadi Arshad, and 24-year-old Aram Khalidi Nasab have each been sentenced to a total of 6 years and 11 months in prison on similar charges, with 3 years and 7 months enforceable. Typically, the security and judicial apparatus of the Islamic Republic accuses detainees in protests of being affiliated with opposition parties and issues prison sentences against them. 33-year-old Hiwa Mahmoudi has also been sentenced to two years in prison for 'conspiracy and gathering against national security.' According to Hengaw, these six citizens, who are from the village of Pasouy in the Piranshahr district, were arrested by government agents during the nationwide protests following the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini in the custody of the morality police and were temporarily released on bail after some time. The seventh day of hunger strike for Keyvan Rouhshozadeh, a Kurdish political prisoner, is ongoing in protest against torture. Seven individuals were arrested in Oshnaviyeh for the execution of prison sentences. Nayeb Asgari, a political prisoner sentenced to death in Urmia prison, has been transferred to solitary confinement. The continued detention of four political prisoners in Sanandaj persists, with deprivation of access to lawyers and family visits.