Imminent execution risk for Kurdish political prisoner Yousef Ahmadi

Hengaw — Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Yousef Ahmadi, a Kurdish political prisoner from Baneh, faces an imminent risk of execution after his case was recently transferred to Iran’s sentence enforcement unit. Ahmadi, who is currently held at Sanandaj Central Prison, could have his death sentence carried out in the coming days.

Hengaw Organization for Human Rights has learned that the death sentence against the 40-year-old prisoner was issued following a judicial process marked by systematic violations of fundamental rights. The case relied primarily on confessions extracted under severe physical and psychological torture by Iranian security agencies.

Ahmadi has been imprisoned for more than five years without being granted a single day of temporary leave.

Hengaw warns against the execution of Yousef Ahmadi and calls on international human-rights institutions to take immediate action to halt the implementation of his death sentence.

Earlier this month, Ahmadi joined eight other political prisoners at Sanandaj Central Prison in a hunger strike, held in parallel with a general strike across Kurdistan. The action was aimed at condemning the killing of civilians by Iranian government forces in Lorestan, Kermanshah, and Ilam, and in solidarity with protesters across Iran.

Death sentence and an unfair judicial process

In September 2023, Branch One of the Sanandaj Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Saeedi, sentenced Yousef Ahmadi to death on charges of “armed rebellion” (baghi), citing alleged membership in the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran. The ruling was upheld without modification during the winter of the same year by Branch 39 of Iran’s Supreme Court.

Hengaw’s findings indicate that the proceedings against Ahmadi were conducted in clear violation of fair-trial standards, with coerced confessions serving as the primary basis for both prosecution and sentencing. These confessions were obtained under sustained physical and psychological torture and continuous pressure by security forces.

Torture and denial of medical care

Forced confessions were extracted from Ahmadi while several vertebrae in his spine were damaged as a result of torture. He reportedly lost consciousness on multiple occasions after being beaten with electric cables. Security forces also threatened to harm his family members in order to force him to accept the charges.

At the time of his arrest, Ahmadi was already injured and had previously sustained a fracture to his arm. Despite this, he was denied adequate medical treatment while held at the Sanandaj Intelligence Department detention facility. He also suffers from epilepsy and had been under neurological supervision prior to his arrest, yet was deprived of access to medical care throughout interrogation.

Case fabrication and collective sentencing

Hengaw’s investigations show that the prosecution of Yousef Ahmadi and his co-defendants involved extensive security-driven case fabrication.

Three other individuals linked to the case were convicted on charges of “aiding armed rebellion” and collectively sentenced to 65 years in prison:

• Mohammad Karimi — 25 years
• Baset Karimi — 20 years
• Mohammad Feyzi — 20 years

These sentences were formally communicated on 3 September 2023.

As in Ahmadi’s case, the convictions of his co-defendants were based largely on confessions extracted under torture, while all defendants were repeatedly denied access to legal counsel during interrogation, trial proceedings, and after their transfer to prison.

Arrests

Yousef Ahmadi was violently arrested by Iranian government forces on 26 April 2020. Mohammad Karimi, Mohammad Feyzi, and Baset Karimi were arrested one day earlier, on 25 April 2020. Following prolonged detention at the Sanandaj Intelligence Department facility, all were transferred to Sanandaj Central Prison.