The Europe Peace Foundation (EPF) has issued a strong condemnation of the Iranian government for the arbitrary arrest and execution of its citizens. In a statement released on 27 June 2025, EPF President Sappan Hum KC voiced deep concern over the intensifying wave of political repression in recent weeks. He described the executions as “the most extreme form of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, which should never be employed under any circumstances”. The statement confirmed that three individuals accused of espionage were executed during the 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel, followed by a further three executions on 25 June, just one day after a ceasefire was announced. President KC urged the Iranian authorities to cease all plans for further arrests and executions immediately, and to implement a moratorium on the death penalty. He noted that such punishments for non-lethal offences are explicitly prohibited under international law, as set out in the EPF’s Global Peace 2030 agenda.
The crackdown escalated during the recent 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel, with Iranian authorities launching a sweeping campaign of arrests and executions under the pretext of national security. According to the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), more than 700 people have been arrested in cities across the country, with hundreds more detained in Tehran alone. Many of those targeted are activists and members of religious and ethnic minorities. Checkpoints have been set up in urban and border areas to facilitate arrests, with a particular focus on citizens with no known political affiliations. The CHRI has documented the use of fast-tracked trials, often without legal representation or due process, and reports that many detainees are being held incommunicado or subjected to torture. CHRI warns that additional executions are expected imminently and urges international actors to press Iran to put a halt to these human rights violations.
The human rights organisation Hengaw has played a vital role in documenting the situation on the ground, particularly in Kurdish-majority provinces. According to Hengaw’s latest report, since the outbreak of hostilities with Israel, at least 734 individuals have been detained across various provinces of Iran, a significant proportion of whom are Kurds. Among the detainees are at least 32 women and eight European nationals. Those arrested have been accused of sweeping charges such as “espionage for Israel”, “propaganda against the state” and “disturbing public opinion”. Signalling a concerted effort by security forces to suppress dissent and stifle civil rights, the arrests highlight the use of national security discourse to justify widespread repression.
The intensifying crackdown has disproportionately affected Kurdish regions. The provinces of Kermanshah and West Azerbaijan (Urmia) have registered the highest number of detentions, with 126 and 59 respectively. According to Hengaw, at least 26 of those detained are Kurdish women and girls, including 18 minors who were arrested in Mahabad for social media-related activity. These figures highlight a broader state-led strategy to suppress Kurdish civic and political engagement, with a particular focus on women and young people.
This targeted repression also carries deeper symbolic significance within the framework of the ‘Jin, Jiyan, Azadî’ (Women, Life, Freedom) movement, a powerful rallying call among Kurdish communities. The arrests of Kurdish women and girls in particular reflect an effort to undermine this emancipatory movement. This surge in arrests appears to be part of a coordinated attempt by the Iranian authorities to dismantle Kurdish activism, restrain civil participation and stifle freedom of expression in marginalised regions. By criminalising peaceful social media expression and labelling it a threat to national security, the Iranian authorities are actively attempting to dismantle the social foundations of Kurdish resilience among the youth. The extensive targeting of Kurdish people by the Iranian state amid the ongoing crackdown was also covered by international news outlets.
Additional reports from Kurdish-majority regions further highlight the breadth and severity of the Iranian government’s campaign of repression against the Kurds. In Naghadeh, six Kurdish men — Kaveh Qaderi, Amin Bashouki, Rahman Khalkhali, Farhad Kanada, Saman Seyed Mahmoudian and Saman Kakemami — were arrested by Iranian intelligence agents between 24 and 26 June 2025 and taken to undisclosed locations. Of particular note is Kakemami, a sociology graduate suffering from diabetes, whose health in custody is a cause for concern. The families of the detainees remain uninformed about the detainees’ conditions or whereabouts.
Further arrests include Kurdish individuals such as Mohammad Lotfifar from Mahabad, Anwar Bayzidi from Bukan and the Kurdish poet and writer Omar Mohammadi from Oshnavieh. They were all detained without warrants or charges, and their whereabouts are unknown. In Dehloran, activist Kianoush Cheraghi was arrested shortly after his release from prison, while his wife Akram Sabzi was briefly detained and fined for her social media activity.
Mojahed Korkor, executed on 11 June after 904 days of imprisonment.
Meanwhile, politically motivated executions have continued alarmingly. One such victim was Mojahed Korkor, a protester who was arrested during the demonstrations that followed the killing of 10-year-old Kian Pirfalak by state security forces in Izeh, Khuzestan Province, in November 2022. While Kian’s death became a powerful symbol of the brutal crackdown and catalysed the ‘Jin, Jiyan, Azadî’ movement across Iran, Korkor’s execution was carried out on the date that would have been Kian’s birthday: 11 June. This added symbolic weight to the state’s ongoing persecution. On 25 June, three Kurdish men — Idris Ali and Azad Shojaei from Sardasht, and Rasoul Ahmad Rasoul from Sulaymaniyah in Iraqi Kurdistan — were secretly executed at Urmia Central Prison following coerced confessions and denial of legal representation.
With executions continuing at an urgent pace, Behruz Ehsani Eslamloo, a Kurdish political prisoner arrested during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests, and another political prisoner, Mehdi Hassani, are currently on death row. They have recently been transferred from Evin Prison to Ghezel Hesar Prison, where they are being held in solitary confinement as their executions loom. Both were sentenced to death in trials that were widely condemned for lacking due process and fairness. Hengaw and international human rights groups have denounced these rulings, highlighting systemic violations of legal rights and calling for urgent global intervention to prevent their executions.
Pakhshan Azizi and Warisheh Moradi, two Kurdish women political prisoners remain under imminent threat of execution.
Pakhshan Azizi: A symbol of resistance in ongoing struggle for Kurdish and Iranian women’s freedom
Two Kurdish women, political prisoners Warisheh Moradi and Pakhshan Azizi, also remain under imminent threat of execution despite having serious health issues and having had their due process rights violated. Moradi, a member of the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK), was sentenced to death in November 2024 for “armed rebellion”. Azizi, a social worker and human rights activist, was sentenced to death in July 2024, a sentence that was upheld by the Supreme Court in January 2025. Both women have been subjected to torture and denied legal representation, as well as facing unfair trials. Their cases highlight the Iranian regime’s ongoing repression of Kurdish activists and its use of the death penalty to silence dissent. International human rights organisations continue to call for their immediate release and for an end to politically motivated executions in Iran.
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