In the released video, this civil activist refers to his first experience of arrest in 2007 and states that at that time, witnessing the “suffering and pain of society” motivated him to pursue social and cultural activism in order to keep “violence, addiction, and social harms” away from the community. He also mentioned that last year he was arrested during “a completely civil action” aimed at saving a human life, and now he must serve his new prison sentence.
Hersh Zandi Nawgaran was arrested on Monday, 20 January 2025, by Sanandaj Intelligence Department forces at his workplace without a judicial warrant and transferred to the intelligence detention center. He was moved to Sanandaj Central Prison after a few days and was temporarily released on 18 February 2025 on bail.
Mr. Zandi Nawgaran, 40 years old, is married and the father of one child, with a history of political arrests and convictions. He was previously sentenced in 1386 (2007) to one year of Ta’zir imprisonment on charges of “membership in the Kurdistan Komala Party of Iran.”
At the end of his message, Zandi Nawgaran said: “Just as my father and grandfather lived and died in Kurdistan, I will remain in this land. Now I move from a larger prison to a smaller one. I wish health and resilience to my people and my nation.”