Sunni cleric Younes Ashari remains detained as fate stays unknown

Hengaw — Thursday, December 25, 2025

Iranian government forces have held Sunni cleric Younes Ashari in detention for one week after arresting him in the Turkmen Sahra region.

Information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights indicates that Ashari, the Sunni Friday prayer leader of the Zavkuh area in Kalaleh County, Golestan province, was arrested on Friday, December 19, 2025, by agents of the Intelligence Department and transferred to an undisclosed location.

Efforts by his family and close associates to obtain information about his situation have so far been unsuccessful.

No information is available regarding the reasons for his arrest, any charges brought against him, his place of detention, or his current condition.