Twenty-Eight Protesters in Kurdish City Summoned to Court

Twenty-eight protesters from the Kurdish town of Abdanan, who were previously arrested and had their cases marked as "closed," have been called to appear before judicial and security institutions on the eve of the anniversary of their protest, a human rights organization has reported.

The report by Hengaw reveals that these 28 individuals were summoned by Branch 1 of the Ilam Revolutionary Court. In the summonses sent to them, they were provided with judicial rulings pertaining to the Woman, Life, Freedom movement.

The defendants include Ahmed Alizadeh, a 50-year-old teacher who had previously been sentenced to six years, seven months, and 17 days in prison by Branch 1 of the Ilam Revolutionary Court. 

The charge against him was "forming a group of more than two people with the intention of disrupting national security and propaganda activity" against the Islamic Republic. The sentence is now likely to be enforced.

The individuals are required to appear before the court on September 10 – just days before the one-year milestone since the beginnings of the Woman, Life, Freedom protests. 

The September 16, 2022 death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini sparked a wave of nationwide anger. She had been arrested for allegedly wearing a hijab improperly.

The nationwide protest movement appears to have waned in recent months following a bloody crackdown by security forces.

More than 500 people have been killed in the clampdown and over 20,000 have been unlawfully detained, activists say.

Following biased trials, the judiciary has handed down stiff sentences, including the death penalty, to protesters.