Rahim Shilani and Azad Rasoulifard each sentenced to two years in prison

Hengaw – Monday, August 10, 2026

Rahim Shilani and Azad Rasoulifard, two Kurdish men from Bukan who had previously spent nearly three months in detention, have each been sentenced to two years in prison.

According to information received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Branch 2 of the Bukan Criminal Court sentenced Shilani, 49, and Rasoulifard, 45, to two years in prison each on the charge of “buying and selling Starlink satellite equipment.”

The two men were arrested by Iranian forces without a warrant on Friday, January 30, 2026. After 52 days of arbitrary detention, interrogation, and severe physical torture at a security detention facility, they were transferred to Bukan Prison on March 23, 2026.

Shilani and Rasoulifard were eventually released temporarily from Bukan Prison in late April 2026, each on bail of 3 billion tomans, after nearly three months in detention. Throughout their detention, they were completely denied access to a lawyer and family visits.