Kurdish political prisoner Nayeb Askari sentenced to 15 years in prison

Hengaw: Sunday, October 27, 2024

Nayeb Askari, a Kurdish political prisoner from Urmia who was previously sentenced to death by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran, has had his death sentence overturned. His case was referred to a parallel branch, resulting in a new sentence of 15 years in prison and a fine, as issued by the Revolutionary Court of Urmia.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Nayeb Askari, 48, who was arrested three years ago and initially sentenced to death, has had his sentence recently revoked. The Second Branch of the Revolutionary Court in Urmia has now sentenced him to 15 years in prison along with a fine for damages to state property.

Previously, Nayeb Askari was sentenced to death in absentia by the Revolutionary Court of Urmia on charges of “moharebeh” (enmity against God) due to his membership in the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK). This sentence was officially communicated to his lawyer on April 15, 2023. Later in the same year, his charges were revised from “moharebeh” to “baghi” (armed rebellion), and the court subsequently reissued the death sentence in October.

Nayeb Askari had previously been a member of the Free Life Party of Kurdistan (PJAK). After separating from the party and receiving a pledge of amnesty from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), he turned himself in to IRGC intelligence in Urmia on March 24, 2021. Five days before this, he had returned to Iran from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq with his family.

Hengaw previously reported that the IRGC conveyed the amnesty promise verbally, without any written documentation, through one of Askari’s acquaintances. Despite being aware of his family’s return, the IRGC later denied granting any form of amnesty.

After enduring three months in solitary confinement at the IRGC detention center in Urmia, where he faced severe torture and mistreatment, Nayeb Askari was transferred to Urmia Central Prison, where he has been held without receiving temporary leave.

It is worth noting that Askari suffers from kidney stones and stomach issues. Last year, he was briefly hospitalized for four days due to kidney stones, but his health has since worsened due to the poor-quality drinking water in prison.

At the time of his arrest, Askari’s wife was pregnant. Despite his family’s circumstances and his own health issues, these factors have been disregarded, and he continues to be deprived of his basic rights. In protest against these deprivations, he has undertaken several hunger strikes over the past three years in Urmia Central Prison.