On Saturday, June 13, 2026, Soheila Mota’i, a civil activist and women’s rights defender from Dehgolan, was arrested after being summoned to the enforcement of sentences unit of the General and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office, and transferred to the women’s ward of Sanandaj Central Prison (Correction and Rehabilitation Center) to begin serving her sentence.
According to reports received by HANA Human Rights Organization, Ms. Mota’i had previously been arrested by security forces in March 2025, amid a wave of arrests targeting Kurdish activists ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8. After a period of interrogation in security detention facilities in Sanandaj, she was temporarily released on bail.
She was subsequently sentenced by the Islamic Revolutionary Court to ta’zir imprisonment on charges including “propaganda against the state” and “action against national security through cooperation with Kurdish opposition parties.” This sentence was upheld on appeal and has now entered its enforcement phase.
Soheila Mota’i is a prominent figure in civil society and women’s rights activism in Dehgolan County, who over the years has repeatedly faced summonses, arrests, and security related prosecutions due to her persistence in pursuing human rights demands and her voluntary social work.
HANA Human Rights Organization regards the continued judicial persecution and imprisonment of civil activists as a clear violation of freedom of expression and the right to association, and calls for an end to the policy of suppressing women’s rights activists in Kurdistan.