Iran

Country Profile

The Islamic Republic of Iran’s already severe restrictions on human rights worsened in a number of areas during the year. Women continued to face discrimination, including through enhanced means for enforcing the mandatory dress code, which led to acts of civil disobedience. A total of 798 citizens were executed during the year, marking a 37 percent increase from 2022. Some political prisoners, including approximately 22,000 persons detained in connection with the 2022-23 protests, were released from prison in February as part of a general amnesty, although many were forced to sign purported confessions of guilt and commit not to participate in further protests, and many of those released as part of the amnesty were later rearrested. Restrictions on religious freedom intensified during the year, particularly against members of the Baha’i community, who were arrested and sentenced in large numbers.

Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: arbitrary or unlawful killings by the government and its agents; enforced disappearance; torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by the government or on behalf of its agents; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; political prisoners or detainees; transnational repression against individuals in another country; arbitrary and unlawful interference with privacy; punishment of family members for alleged offenses by a relative; serious abuses in a conflict, including unlawful recruitment or use of child soldiers and enabling abuses by terrorist groups throughout the region, the Syrian government, Iran-aligned militia groups in Iraq, and Yemeni Houthi militants, all of which were credibly accused of abuses; severe restrictions on freedom of expression, including violence, threats of violence, and unjustified arrests and prosecutions against journalists, censorship, and enforcement of criminal libel and slander laws; serious restrictions on internet freedom; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; restrictions of religious freedom; restrictions on freedom of movement and residence within the territory of a state and on the right to leave the country; refoulement of refugees to a country where they would face torture or persecution; inability of citizens to change their government peacefully through free and fair elections; serious and unreasonable restrictions on political participation; serious government corruption; serious government restrictions on or harassment of domestic or international human rights organizations; extensive gender-based violence, including domestic or intimate partner violence, sexual violence, workplace violence, child, early and forced marriage, femicide, and other forms of such violence; instances of forced sterilization; crimes involving violence or threats of violence targeting ethnic groups, including Kurdish and Baloch minorities; crimes, violence, or threats of violence motivated by antisemitism; trafficking in persons; laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adults, which were enforced; crimes involving violence or threats of violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex persons; significant restrictions on workers’ freedom of association; and existence of any of the worst forms of child labor.

The government did not take credible steps to identify and punish officials who may have committed human rights abuses.

Cases

Imprisoned

Ardeshir Fanaian
Advocate: Rep. Jan
Schakowsky (D-IL)

Afif Naeimi

Fariba Kamalabadi
Advocate:
Rep. Suzanne
Bonamici (D-OR)

Mahvash Sabet
Advocate: Rep. Jan
Schakowsky (D-IL)

Narges Mohammadi
Advocate: Rep. Nancy
Mace (R-SC)

Conditionally Released

Jamaloddin Khanjani

empty cell, transparent placeholder image

Released

Image Farshid Fathi Advocate: Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC)	Image Sima Eshraghi	Image Saeid Rezaie Advocate: Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-KS, Ret.)	Image Saeed Abedini Advocates: Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ, Ret.) & Rep. Raul Labrador (R-ID, Ret.)	Image Rozita Vaseghi Advocate: Rep. Illeana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL, Ret.)
Image Vahid Tizfahm	Image Behnam Irani Advocate: Rep. Juan Vargas (D-CA)	Image Behrouz Tavakkoli	Image Ayatollah Mohammad Kazemeini Boroujerdi Advocate: Rep. Keith Ellis (D-MN, Ret.)	Image Youcef Nadarkhani Advocate: Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO)