There have been numerous arrests in the Kurdish town of Abdanan, which has been a focus of security presence, arrests and violence during the suppression by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards of nationwide protests, and particularly since the beginning of February, reports Iranwire.
There have been nationwide women-led protests across Iran since the death of the Kurdish woman Jina (Mahsa) Amini (22) at the hands of the country’s morality police in September.
Security forces have cracked down hard on the protest movement, killing over 520 people, including dozens of children, and detaining over 18,000, activists say.
The judiciary has been attempting to intimidate protesters with the liberal use of the death sentence in brief trials of less than an hour without proper representation.
The Iranian authorities have cracked down particularly on Kurdish regions of the country. Abdanan in the western province of Ilam is one of a number of cities experiencing a heavy security presence and widespread arrests and abductions by government forces, according to local activists.
A group of residents came out to demonstrate against the arrest on 1 February of two protesters, Sajjad Moradivandan and Ayat Arifinia. Since then tensions have been rising.
Security forces raided the home of a political activist on 2 February and fired tear gas and pellets at people who gathered to protest. According to the public prosecutor, 10 people were arrested and five were injured in this incident.
Twelve people detained in the city and a nearby village since the start of February have been identified, but no word has been received by relatives as to their whereabouts or conditions, reports the Norway-based group that monitors rights violations in Iran’s Kurdish regions, Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights.
At least 104 citizens have been detained by government forces in the recent popular uprising and resistance in Abdanan city, according to entries registered in the Hengaw’s Statistics and Documents Centre.
