Leila Pashaei and Baran Saeidi: Kurdish women activists held under continued pressure in Sanandaj Central Prison

Hengaw: Monday, March 24, 2025

Leila Pashaei and Baran Saeidi, two Kurdish civil activists arrested in connection with International Women’s Day ceremony on March 8 have been transferred to quarantine cells at Sanandaj Central Prison and are currently denied all forms of contact. The two women, who were arrested during "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement are under pressure to make forced confessions.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, twelve days after their arrest, both activists—Leila Pashaei, 45, originally from Saqqez and residing in Sanandaj, and Baran Saeidi, 45, from Sanandaj—remain deprived of fundamental rights, including access to legal counsel. Since last week, they have also been denied contact with their families and are being held in the quarantine unit of the women’s ward at Sanandaj Central Prison (Juvenile Correction and Rehabilitation Center).

Sources report that the two women’s rights activists are under pressure to make self-incriminating statements on camera.

Pashaei and Saeidi were arrested on Monday, March 10, 2025, along with Soheila Motaei and Soma Mohammadzadeh, two other Kurdish women’s rights activists, in the cities of Sanandaj and Dehgolan due to their involvement in International Women’s Day ceremony. They were detained by agents of the Intelligence Department and transferred to the agency’s detention facility in Sanandaj.

Soheila Motaei was released on bail on Monday, March 17, and Soma Mohammadzadeh was released on Wednesday, March 19, both temporarily pending the completion of judicial proceedings.