At least 28 Kurds arrested across multiple cities in Iran amid intensifying crackdown

Hengaw – Thursday, January 29, 2026

At least 28 Kurdish individuals, including two women, have been arbitrarily detained by Iranian government and intelligence forces amid an expanding crackdown following recent protests. The arrests were carried out across the cities of Marivan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Sirvan, Miandoab, Dehloran, Abdanan, Darreh Shahr, Dehgolan, Chavar, Sarableh, Tehran, Sonqor, Javanrud, and Bojnord. In most cases, no official information has been provided regarding the detainees’ whereabouts, legal status, or charges.

Hengaw Organization for Human Rights has verified the identities of those detained as follows:

Marivan, Divandarreh, Miandoab, and Dehgolan

Soran Sahragard, a resident of Marivan, was arrested by Intelligence Ministry agents on Wednesday, January 28, and transferred to a security detention facility in Sanandaj.

Arsalan Divaragar, from Divandarreh, was arrested on Tuesday, January 27, after being summoned to the Intelligence Office in Sanandaj.

In Miandoab, Mohammad Hassan Davoudi, a retired teacher and political activist, was arrested in the early hours of January 28 and transferred to prison to begin serving a three-year and four-month sentence on vaguely defined political charges, including “propaganda against the state” and alleged affiliation with the Freedom Movement of Iran.

Yasin Fathi, 32, from Dehgolan, who was previously detained during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests, was arrested on January 24 by intelligence agents and taken to an undisclosed location.

Kermanshah, Sonqor, and Javanrud

Vahid Ghanbari, 30, from Kermanshah, was violently arrested on January 28 during a raid on his home in the Dareh Deraz neighborhood and transferred to an unknown location.

Bahman Naderi, 39, a former political prisoner from Kermanshah, was detained on January 19 during a home raid in the Jafarabad neighborhood. Authorities have charged him with “clashing with security forces.”

Yahya Heydarian, from Sonqor, was arrested on January 8 during protests and transferred to an undisclosed location.

In Javanrud, Yadgar Rostami was detained without a warrant and taken to an unknown location

Ilam, Chavar, Sarableh, Dehloran, Abdanan, and Darreh Shahr

Sasan Pakravan, from Ilam, was violently arrested during a heavily armed raid on his home on January 27, during which the property was ransacked. His two brothers, Ahmad and Mohammad, managed to escape during the operation.

That same day, Farzaneh Seidi, also from Ilam and previously detained during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, was arrested and taken to an undisclosed location.

Zahra Nazari, a fitness instructor from Ilam, was arrested during a raid on her workplace on January 26 and transferred to an unknown location.

Hassan Khoshrou, also from Ilam, was arrested the same day, with no information released regarding his fate.

Mohammadreza Shahbazi, from Karzan village in Sirvan County, was arrested during a security operation in the village on January 25.

Hamid Cheraghi, from Dehloran, was detained on January 22 and taken to an unknown location.

That same day, Kian Negahdar, an employee of the Dehloran Petrochemical Company, was violently arrested during a raid on his home. He was initially transferred to Darreh Shahr detention center and later moved to Ilam Prison. Reports confirm that he has been subjected to severe torture during his arrest.

Saeid Yasemi, from Abdanan, was arrested on January 19 and transferred to an undisclosed location.

Mehrdad Hassanvand, 30, from Darreh Shahr, was detained on January 24 and taken to an unknown location.

Jalal Faramarzi, a teacher from Ilam, was summoned and interrogated by IRGC Intelligence on January 23 over a video he posted calling for strikes. He was threatened, his electronic devices were confiscated, and a heavy judicial case was opened against him.

Habil Beigmohammadi, from Chavar, was arrested on January 21 and transferred to an undisclosed location.

That same day, Mehrdad Nasiri, 46, from Sarableh, was arrested and transferred to an unknown location.

Zahed Zarei, Jafar Mahmoudi, and Hossein Mahmoudi, all residents of Chavar, were violently arrested on January 20 and transferred to undisclosed locations.