Khuzestan court upholds prison sentences of three Lor protesters imprisoned in Ahvaz

Hengaw – Tuesday, June 2, 2026

The Khuzestan Province Court of Appeals has upheld the prison sentences of three Lor protesters arrested during protests earlier this year. Esmaeil Sheikhinia, Saeid Maqsoudi, and Mahmoud Talkhabi are currently serving their sentences in Sheiban Prison in Ahvaz.

According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Branch 14 of the Khuzestan Court of Appeals issued a ruling, formally communicated to defense lawyer Hossein-Ali Hatami, upholding in full the original verdicts against Sheikhinia and Maqsoudi.

The two men had previously been sentenced by Branch One of the Ahvaz Revolutionary Court to two years in prison each on charges of “disrupting public order.” They were also given supplementary punishments, including a two-year travel ban and a one-year requirement to attend sessions at the Office for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Izeh.

In a separate decision, Branch 16 of the Khuzestan Court of Appeals upheld the five-year prison sentence imposed on Mahmoud Talkhabi on the same charge. However, the court overturned the additional penalties contained in the original verdict, including a two-year travel ban and a two-year requirement to attend sessions at the Office for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, leaving the prison sentence unchanged.

Sheikhinia and Maqsoudi were arrested on December 29, 2025, during protests in Izeh and were subsequently transferred to Sheiban Prison in Ahvaz. Talkhabi was arrested the following day in connection with the same protests and is currently serving his sentence alongside his two co-defendants in Sheiban Prison.