Concerns have intensified over the imminent risk of execution of Kurdish political prisoner Mehrab Abdollahzadeh, after Branch 39 of the Supreme Court rejected his request for a retrial and refused to halt the enforcement of his death sentence, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) reported.
Despite a subsequent retrial request submitted by his lawyers, the court declined to issue an order suspending the execution.
His lawyer, Sidad Shirzad, described the risk of execution as serious in a post on social media platform X, and said: “The retrial request submitted on 20 December [2025] was rejected by Branch 39 of the Supreme Court on 27 January, and despite the re-registration of a retrial request on 17 February, Branch 39 refused to issue an order to halt the execution of the verdict. This refusal comes despite the explicit wording of Note to Article 478 of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding the issuance of an order to halt the execution of the verdict upon receipt of a retrial request, which leaves no room for argument or alternative interpretation.”
Shirzad stated that Abdollahzadeh was arrested during the nationwide protests of 2022 and later sentenced to death on charges of “spreading corruption on earth” (efsad-e fel-arz), allegedly in connection with the killing of Basij member Abbas Fatemiyeh in Orumiyeh.
He added that the case contained numerous procedural and substantive flaws and that the murder accusation and the victim family’s complaint had never been examined by a competent court.
The lawyer also stated that the death sentence was issued on charges of “corruption on earth” rather than murder, and despite repeated objections to jurisdiction, the case was not referred to the Juvenile Criminal Court One.
Shirzad referred to other issues, such as the charges being presented in the absence of legal representation, the body being buried without an autopsy and before the forensic medical report was issued, and the absence of any valid confession to judicial authorities. He also noted the lack of explicit mention of his client’s name in the statements of the deceased’s commander, colleagues and witnesses present at the scene.
He described these issues as part of the serious flaws in Abdollahzadeh’s seven-volume case file.
Background
Abdollazadeh, born on 15 March 1998 in Orumiyeh, was arrested by security forces on 22 October 2022 during the “Woman, Life, Freedom” (Jin, Jiyan, Azadi) uprising.
He was detained at his workplace, a barbershop, by the Intelligence Organisation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and transferred to the agency’s detention centre, where he was subjected to 38 days of physical and psychological torture in an attempt to force him to confess to participating in protests and to the killing of a Basij member.
However, footage of the incident in the possession of the security forces does not show Abdollahzadeh at the scene, and he has consistently denied any involvement in the killing.
Only under pressure stemming from the arrest of his girlfriend and threats to detain other family members, was he coerced into accepting the interrogators’ narrative and stating that he had punched and kicked the Basij member during the incident.
According to the source, “Mehrab denied all charges throughout the interrogations and in court, and even requested that the location data from his mobile phone be examined to prove that he was not present at the scene of the killing. During the first 38 days of his detention, despite repeated inquiries by his family to the security and judicial authorities in Orumiyeh, they received no information about his fate. Throughout this period, he was denied family visits and access to a lawyer.”
Regarding the judicial process, the source said: “After the interrogations ended, he was transferred to Orumiyeh Central Prison. His case was initially referred to Branch Seven of the Investigative Office of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office of Orumiyeh, presided over by Judge Soltanzadeh, and after the indictment was issued, it was sent to Branch One of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Orumiyeh for final trial. Following three trial sessions, two held by video link and one in person, he was sentenced to death within minutes and without being allowed to defend himself. The verdict was issued on 19 September 2024 and communicated to him in prison a month later, on 21 October 2024.”
After his lawyers filed an appeal, the case was referred to the Supreme Court, which sent it to its ninth branch in February 2025.
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