Turkey deports Mohammadreza Elmi and Omid Qazvini to Kazakhstan; they face imminent risk of extradition to Iran

Hengaw – Saturday, October 18, 2025

Two Iranian political activists, Omid Qazvini, a Kurdish activist from Oshnaviyeh (Shno), and Mohammadreza Elmi, from Karaj, have been deported from Turkey to Kazakhstan and are now facing an imminent risk of extradition to Iran.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, both men, who had sought asylum due to political persecution in Iran, were deported from Turkey to Kazakhstan on Friday. They are currently being held at an airport in Kazakhstan, where authorities have informed them that they will soon be transferred to Iran.

Omid Qazvini, 37, is a member of the Komala Party of the Toilers of Kurdistan, while Mohammadreza Elmi had previously fled Iran following repeated threats and pressure from security agencies. The two were detained in Turkey for one month while attempting to reach Europe to seek asylum before their deportation to Kazakhstan.

If extradited to Iran, both activists face a grave risk of arbitrary detention, torture, and other forms of inhuman or degrading treatment by the Iranian security apparatus.

Hengaw expresses deep concern over the possible extradition of these two political activists and urges the Kazakh government to immediately halt any deportation proceedings in accordance with international human rights and refugee protection obligations. Hengaw further calls on international human rights bodies and refugee advocacy organizations to intervene urgently to prevent their forced return to Iran.