Pezhman Jamshidi: A reflection of Iran’s patriarchal structure and gender injustice

Hengaw – Friday, October 31, 2025

According to investigations by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the criminal case filed against Iranian actor and former footballer Pezhman Jamshidi on charges of rape and kidnapping reflects the deep-rooted gender discrimination and the collapse of judicial justice in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The case has now become one of the most striking examples of the systematic violation of women’s rights and the denial of justice for victims of sexual violence in Iran.

Arrest and release of Pezhman Jamshidi

On October 19, 2025, Iranian state media reported that “a film actor” had been arrested on charges of rape and kidnapping.

Hours later, it was confirmed that the individual was Pezhman Jamshidi, a former player for Persepolis FC and Iran’s national football team, and one of the most active actors in Iranian cinema.

Initial reports indicated that the plaintiff was a 20-year-old woman who filed a complaint accusing Jamshidi of rape. Following preliminary investigations, he was transferred to Ghezel Hesar Prison under a detention order. Despite the severity of the charges, Jamshidi was released only ten days later on bail — and soon after, he left Iran for Turkey, even as the case remained under investigation.

The victim’s family later stated that they had been subjected to threats and intimidation, and that Jamshidi had previously faced a similar complaint which was withdrawn under pressure and financial inducement.

Publication, censorship, and security control of the story

According to a report published in the Ham-Mihan newspaper by well-known journalist Elaheh Mohammadi, the complainant was a 20-year-old actress who was set to sign a contract with Jamshidi for the television series “Mahkoom” (Convicted). She was introduced to him through another woman and went to his home after gaining his trust.

The victim stated that Jamshidi, after using drugs, tied her hands and feet and raped her. She managed to escape and, with the help of neighbors, went to the forensic medical center, where she officially filed a complaint. DNA testing confirmed a full match with Jamshidi’s sample. During the six-month investigation, Jamshidi allegedly offered 50 billion rials (around USD 1 million) to persuade the victim to withdraw her complaint.

The woman and her mother both reported repeated pressure and harassment from the defendant’s lawyers during the legal process to force them to drop the charges.

Just hours after Ham-Mihan published the report, its website went offline and the newspaper was banned by security agencies without explanation. The editor confirmed that the order came directly from Iranian security authorities — a clear reflection of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s security-driven approach to sexual violence cases.

State-run media outlets affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard, including Tasnim and Fars, accused Ham-Mihan of “media immorality” and claimed that Jamshidi’s departure from Iran was “temporary.”

Jamshidi later released a public statement, calling the allegations “fabricated” and insisting that his travel abroad was “legal and work-related.”

The head of Iran’s Forensic Medicine Organization also denied receiving a case matching this description — a claim that contradicts the victim’s testimony.

This contradictory set of statements demonstrates how Iran’s judicial and media systems work not to protect victims, but to control the narrative and manage public perception of sexual violence cases.

Journalistic repression and security crackdown

Elaheh Mohammadi, the journalist who reported the story, is the same reporter who was arrested in 2022 for covering Jina Amini’s funeral and later sentenced to five years in prison after 17 months in detention. She was summoned again in October 2024 to serve her sentence.

Hengaw expresses deep concern over the security threats facing Elaheh Mohammadi and other journalists working on gender equality and women’s rights, and considers the shutdown of Ham-Mihan as part of the systematic securitization of awareness around sexual violence in Iran.

Legal vacuum and structural gender discrimination in Iran’s laws

Under Article 224 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, sexual intercourse through force or violence outside of marriage is defined as “zina bi’l-‘anf” (forced adultery) and is punishable by death.

According to a clause in the same article, cases involving unconsciousness, sleep, intoxication, or the deception of a minor girl are also treated as zina bi’l-‘anf.

However, these provisions are rooted not in human rights principles but in religious jurisprudence (fiqh). The concept of “zina” is a moral and religious notion meant to preserve Islamic order rather than protect the human rights of survivors. Notably, marital rape is not recognized as a crime in Iran, as women are legally obliged to provide “sexual submission” to their husbands.

Hengaw emphasizes that, according to international human rights standards, sexual violence is any sexual act or behavior without free and informed consent, not merely coerced intercourse as defined in religious law. Sexual violence includes the use of sexual power or coercion without the individual’s consent or awareness.

In democratic legal systems, sexual violence encompasses verbal harassment, threats, assault, molestation, and rape, each categorized and penalized based on severity — not by applying inhumane punishments like execution. Studies have shown that the death penalty deters victims from reporting sexual violence rather than preventing it.

International standards also define any sexual act involving a child by an adult as sexual abuse, regardless of context. While some legal systems distinguish between minors and adolescents, all democratic countries criminalize adult sexual violence against children.

Moreover, in systems based on gender equality, non-consensual sexual acts — even within relationships or marriage — are criminalized, as are sexual and emotional abuses of power in workplaces and universities.

In Iran, however, the absence of a clear legal definition of sexual violence, combined with a misogynistic and oppressive judicial structure, makes justice virtually unattainable. By grounding the concept of sexual violence in religious law, the judiciary narrows its definition, imposes the death penalty only in limited cases, and then uses state security mechanisms to silence victims and journalists, rather than protecting them.

Hengaw’s position and international appeal

Hengaw believes that the Pezhman Jamshidi case is not merely an isolated allegation of rape, but a manifestation of systematic gender injustice and a symbol of a judicial system that punishes victims instead of perpetrators. The organization also expresses serious concern for the safety of the victim and her mother, given the case’s evident security manipulation.

Based on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), Hengaw calls on international bodies to:

• Urge the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women to examine this case as a clear example of gender injustice and systemic impunity in Iran.

• Demand that UN member states pressure the Islamic Republic to reform its sexual violence laws and criminalize rape based on the principle of consent.

• Ensure immediate protection for journalists covering women’s rights and sexual violence in Iran, and safeguard press freedom in this domain.

• Establish mechanisms to help survivors of sexual violence report their cases safely to international bodies, given the lack of judicial protection inside Iran.