'I Am Risk': Iranian lawyer’s Letter to UN Before His Death

A human rights lawyer who died in his office in Mashhad had written to a United Nations fact-finding mission requesting protection as a “lawyer at risk,” warning of threats from Iranian security agencies.

Khosrow Alikordi gave the letter to colleague Marzieh Mohebi to forward to the UN mission.

The letter detailed the harassment and prosecution he faced for his human rights work.

Alikordi, 45, was found dead on his office floor on Friday evening, his face bloodied from an apparent fall.

But the circumstances surrounding his death - combined with the immediate seizure of security camera footage and his cellphone, restrictions on where he could be buried, and pressure on family members to accept an official narrative - have raised serious questions about what happened to a lawyer who represented some of Iran’s most high-profile political prisoners.

The full text of the letter follows:

Greetings and respect,

I, Khosrow Alikordi, a lawyer living in Iran, submit an account of my situation for your consideration and possible support:

Record of Activities and Government Harassment

Following the 2009 presidential election and formation of the Green Movement, I undertook representation of a number of protesters. From that year, the Ministry of Intelligence of the Islamic Republic began creating files against me and issued numerous summonses.

In 2010, despite gaining admission into the public law master’s program at Allameh Tabataba’i University in Tehran, the Assessment Organization prevented me from continuing my education based on a letter from the Ministry of Intelligence.

I filed a complaint with the Administrative Justice Court, which issued a final ruling for my university registration, but Mr. Sadreddin Shariati, then president of Allameh Tabataba’i University, prevented implementation of the ruling and denied me the opportunity to continue my education.

During the nationwide Woman, Life, Freedom protests in 2022, I provided free legal representation for many detainees and families of those killed, including the families of Abolfazl Adinehzadeh and Erfan Rezaei Navaei.

I also accepted the representation of Ms. Fatemeh Sepehri, Mr. Mohammad Hossein Sepehri and Mr. Kamal Jafari Yazdi - signatories of the statement calling for Mr. Khamenei’s resignation.

Judicial Cases and Convictions

The Ministry of Intelligence has opened five cases against me to date:

First Case (2023)

For charges of “propaganda activity against the Islamic Republic system in favor of opposition groups,” Hadi Mansouri, then head of Branch 1 of Mashhad Revolutionary Court, sentenced me to one year in prison, two years’ exile to Nehbandan city, two years’ deprivation from legal practice, and two years’ prohibition from social media activity. The sentence is final, and I served one year in Mashhad Prison.

Second Case (2023)

For charges of “revealing secrets” (publishing names and charges of political clients on social media and interviews with Persian-language television abroad), the head of Branch 131 of Mashhad Criminal Court 2 sentenced me to pay 150,000,000 rials [$125] in fines.

Third Case (2024)

For charges of “propaganda activity against the Islamic Republic system in favor of opposition groups,” Hossein Yazdankhah, head of Branch 5 of Mashhad Revolutionary Court, sentenced me to one year in prison.

Fourth Case (2025)

For charges of “propaganda activity against the Islamic Republic system in favor of opposition groups,” Gholamreza Akbari Moghaddam, head of Branch 1 of Mashhad Revolutionary Court, sentenced me to one year in prison, two years’ deprivation from legal practice, and a two-year travel ban. In this case, bail of one hundred billion rials was taken from me. Appeal of the sentence in Khorasan Razavi Provincial Court of Appeals is ongoing.

Fifth Case (2025)

I have been summoned by Amir Hossein Ghanad, investigator of Branch 904 of Mashhad Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office, on security charges. The case is in the preliminary investigation stage.

Deprivation from Education

In 2019, I was accepted into the PhD program at Tehran University. After my imprisonment, Tehran University recently denied me continuation of my education, despite having a scientific research article and an English language certificate (MSRT).

Given the continued pressures, file creation, and threats by the Ministry of Intelligence, professional and educational deprivations, and serious dangers to my life and freedom, I request that, as a lawyer at risk in Iran, you provide me with the necessary support.

Respectfully,

Khosrow Alikordi

Lawyer - living in Iran