Ahmad Hassanzadeh, Father of slain Kurdish protester sentenced to prison

Hengaw: Friday, December 6, 2024

Ahmad Hassanzadeh, a 57-year-old Kurdish man from Bukan and father of Ahmad Hassanzadeh, killed during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, has been sentenced to three months in prison by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Another case against him is still ongoing.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Ahmad Hassanzadeh was recently convicted on charges of “propaganda against the state," by Branch 101 of the Criminal Court in Bukan, presided over by Judge Mehdi Fakhri. The charges stemmed from his public presence encouraging shopkeepers and merchants to participate in a strike coinciding with the second anniversary of the "Woman, Life, Freedom (Jin, Jiyan, Azadi) movement.

During the court session, Ahmad Hassanzadeh was not allowed to present his defense, and another case against him is still ongoing.

Over the past two years, Ahmad Hassanzadeh has been summoned and detained multiple times by the security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Most recently, on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, he and his daughter, Solmaz Hassanzadeh, were arrested during a raid on their home by security forces on his deceased son’s birthday.

He had also been arrested previously on September 5, 2023, along with his daughter Solmaz, by security forces.

Ahmad’s son, Mohammad Hassanzadeh, lost his life on the evening of November 16, 2022, during the public protests in Bukan. He was killed while attempting to rescue a young woman abducted by government forces. He suffered multiple stab wounds and a gunshot to his chest inflicted by government forces.