Iran: Human rights defenders targeted amid brutal crackdown on protests
Front Line Defenders is deeply alarmed by the targeting of human rights defenders as part of the brutal crackdown on protests in Iran. The organisation condemns the arrest of woman human rights defender Shima Ghooseh on 16 January 2026, the judicial harassment and criminalisation of human rights defenders Nazanin Salari, Mahmoud Taravat-Roi, Masoud Ahmadian and the detention of Seyed Mehdi Karimi Farsi during and after the protests in early January 2026.
Shima Goosheh and Seyed Mehdi Karimi Farsi are human rights defenders and lawyers who have been advocating for women’s rights and against the death penalty in Iran. Nazanin Salari, Mahmoud Taravat-Roi and Masoud Ahmadian are human rights defenders and lawyers who have actively defended the rights of women and children and played a role in advancing fundamental rights and access to justice in Iran.
On 16 January 2026, woman human rights defender and feminist activist, Shima Ghooseh, was arrested after her house was raided in Tehran. There is no information about her whereabouts, charges brought against her or the agents who arrested her.
On 6 January 2026, human rights defenders, Nazanin Salari, Mahmoud Taravat-Roi, and Masoud Ahmadian were summoned and appeared before the Branch I of the Shiraz Revolutionary Court charged with ‘collaborating with hostile states,’ ‘gathering and collusion against national security,’ and ‘propagating against state.’ Nazanin Salari is also charged with ‘encouraging people to engage in corruption and prostitution’ and ‘being present in public places without a religious veil’ before Branch 112 of the Criminal Court. She was initially charged in November 2023. On 1 January 2026, Nazanin Salari, who was a member of the Disciplinary Court of the Fars Bar Association, resigned from her position along with a group of lawyers due to the Bar Association's inactivity regarding support for the legal rights of protesters. Additionally, Mahmoud Taravatroi had announced after the protests started on 28 December 2025, that he would represent detained protesters on a pro-bono basis.
On 4 January 2026, Seyed Mehdi Karimi Farsi began serving a one-year prison sentence previously imposed against him in October 2024 for ‘propaganda against the State’, related to content he published during the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ protests between 2022-2023. In August 2023, he gained widespread attention after staging a peaceful protest march in Tehran calling for the independence of the Iran Central Bar Association, an action that sparked nationwide debate on the independence of lawyers and strengthened solidarity within the legal profession.
The targeting of these human rights defenders occurs in the context of a brutal crackdown on protests in Iran since 28 December 2025, which has resulted in thousands of protesters being killed and tens of thousands arrested. The targeting of these defenders comes amid heightened repression, raising serious concerns that the authorities are seeking to further punish and silence human rights defenders who have peacefully supported the right to protest and advocated to uphold the rule of law, the independence of bar associations and access to justice in Iran.
Furthermore, since 8 January 2026, no updated information has been obtained on the situation of the aforementioned human rights defenders, due to the nationwide internet shutdown. It is estimated that since this date, there has been more than 290 hours of a near-total internet blackout. This has severely restricted access to independent reporting and sharing of essential and life-saving information. Prior to the internet shutdown, human rights defenders, both inside and outside of Iran, had reported receiving threats and many human rights lawyers had expressed availability to represent arrested protesters free of charge.
Additionally, Iran’s disconnection from the rest of the world during the brutal crackdown on protests, has inhibited journalists’ access to report and the presence of independent media on the ground. This has made the work of human rights organisations seeking to document and report on violations unattainable. It has also exposed those working on ground to a high degree of risk, in particular, to their life and personal safety.
Front Line Defenders is deeply alarmed by the reports detailing the repression of protests by the authorities in Iran, which have been taking place since 28 December 2025 in response to the country’s economic situation. The organisation calls on the international community to ensure that the human rights violations committed in this context do not go unpunished, rather that those responsible, are firmly held to account through available international mechanisms.
Front Line Defenders believe that human rights defenders in Iran have been targeted specifically in the context of the crackdown on protests, as a result of their roles as lawyers and defenders of fundamental rights and freedoms. The organisation calls on the authorities in Iran to cease the judicial harassment and criminalisation of Nazanin Salari, Mahmoud Taravat-Roi, and Masoud Ahmadian and to drop all charges against them. Furthermore, Front Line Defenders calls for the immediate release of Seyed Mehdi Karimi Farsi and information from the authorities on the whereabouts and safety of Shima Ghooseh. Human rights defenders in Iran must be protected and able to carry out their human rights work without the fear of reprisals and free from all restrictions.
