December Protests – Eleven Kurds arrested in Sonqor, Kermanshah

Hengaw– Tuesday, January 6, 2026

At least eleven Kurdish individuals, including five women and two minors, have been arrested by Iranian government forces in Sonqor, located in Kermanshah Province (Kermashan), amid the ongoing wave of protest-related detentions.

According to information obtained by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Ehsan Seyfouri, a resident of Sonqor, was arrested without a warrant on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, and transferred to an undisclosed location.

Several other individuals were detained on Monday, January 5, 2026. They have been identified as Javad Ostovari, a former Iranian and Asian wrestling champion and coach; Keyumars Va’ezi, a teacher; Mehdi Bagheri, a civil activist; as well as Fa’ezeh Shamayeli, Amir Farhadi, Yasin Hashemtian, and Asal Begvand, a 16-year-old minor. According to informed sources, Asal Begvand was arrested while injured.

On the same day, three women from the same family—Farnoush Pasha’i, Zahra Pasha’i (aunt and niece), and Bahar Rafiei, a 17-year-old minor and daughter of Zahra Pasha’i—were also arrested in Sonqor. Sources later confirmed that Zahra Pasha’i was released after a short period of detention.

No official information has been released regarding the whereabouts, conditions of detention, or charges against the remaining detainees.

These arrests followed civil protests held in the city a day earlier, which escalated into violence after government forces intervened and opened fire on demonstrators.