Neda Dadehjani and Setayesh Sarabi sentenced to prison, flogging, and internal exile

Hengaw – Monday, July 20, 2026

Neda Dadehjani and Setayesh (Behnoush) Sarabi, two Kurdish women from Qorveh who were arrested during the January protests earlier this year, have been sentenced by the Iranian judiciary to a combined total of six years in prison, four years of internal exile to Nik Shahr in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, and 62 lashes.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Dadehjani, a theater artist and puppeteer, and Sarabi were each sentenced by Branch 102 of the Criminal Court in Qorveh to one year in prison, 31 lashes, and two years of internal exile to Nik Shahr on the charge of "disrupting public order."

Branch One of the Revolutionary Court of Qorveh also sentenced each of them to two years in prison on the charge of "assembly and collusion to commit crimes against internal security." As a result, each woman received a total sentence of three years in prison, 31 lashes, and two years of internal exile to Nik Shahr, of which two years are enforceable.

Iranian security forces arrested the two women during the January protests earlier this year.

Dadehjani received the Outstanding Puppetry Award and the First Prize for Puppet Design and Construction at the Eighth Regional Theater Festival for People with Disabilities. She has also worked as a costume and makeup designer in theater productions.