Detention extended for Behzad Rasouli amid 33rd day of hunger strike in Saqqez Prison

Hengaw – Saturday, October 11, 2025

The temporary detention order of Behzad Rasouli, a 42-year-old Kurdish detainee from Saqqez, has been extended for another 120 days as he enters the 33rd day of his hunger strike. Rasouli was arrested by Iranian security forces in Isfahan in late July and was held incommunicado for several weeks before being transferred to Saqqez Prison.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, judicial authorities extended Rasouli’s detention order for an additional four months. He has maintained his hunger strike in protest against his arbitrary detention and the denial of due process.

A source close to his family reported that Rasouli’s sister and brother were permitted to visit him for the first time in two months. They described his physical condition as extremely poor, noting significant weight loss and weakness after more than a month without food. During the visit, Rasouli stated that he began his hunger strike shortly after his arrest in Isfahan to protest the unlawful nature of his detention and the authorities’ refusal to disclose details of his case.

Rasouli was arrested on July 26, 2025, while visiting his child in Isfahan. Hengaw previously documented that he has lost at least 13 kilograms since his detention and the onset of his hunger strike.

In October 2021, Rasouli’s former wife, Mitra Taghipour, and their four-year-old son, Mehrsam Rasouli, were arrested by security forces at the Mehran border crossing upon their return from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and handed over to the Intelligence Department in Isfahan.

Behzad Rasouli was previously affiliated with the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) during his stay in the Iraqi Kurdistan but later left the party and returned to Saqqez.