Kurdish female blogger tortured in Iran as concerns over war detainees grow: Watchdog

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Kurdish female blogger detained in mid-March during the US-Israel war with Iran was severely tortured by Iranian authorities, a human rights watchdog said on Sunday, amid rising concerns over the number of arrests carried out during the conflict.

Hadis Haghighi, 21, was arrested in her family home in Urmia, in Iran's West Azerbaijan province, in March, according to the Norway-based Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, which monitors human rights violations in Iran and in particular the Kurdish areas in the west of the country, known as Rojhelat.

In a report published Sunday, the watchdog said Iranian authorities had subjected Haghighi “to severe torture,” adding that she has remained in custody “under unclear conditions” since her arrest.

"Sources said she has been subjected to physical and psychological pressure during detention and faces serious security-related charges," Hengaw said, noting that "Haghighi has been denied access to a lawyer and family visits throughout her detention."

"Her social media account has also been blocked."

Haghighi's arrest came as Iranian intelligence agencies and the police have detained thousands of ordinary Iranians merely for taking photos and videos of the airstrikes during the six-week war and have accused them of working with the "enemies," a charge that could carry the death penalty in Iran.

According to the Iranian government, at least 1,500 individuals were arrested in March at the apex of Iran’s war with the US and Israel. The Iranian state has attributed the arrests to espionage and connection to the “enemy.”

Spokesperson of the Iranian judiciary, Asghar Jahangir, said in March that individuals accused of spying and cooperating with “hostile states” may face death penalty or property confiscation, adding that they have already issued around 200 indictments.

Iran also continued to carry out pending executions during the war. At least 14 prisoners were hanged in the first three weeks of the war, according to Hengaw. One of the prisoners was executed for charges related to spying for Israel during the 12-Day conflict last Summer, six for alleged links to the Iranian armed opposition Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK), and seven for participating in January protests.

Erupted in response to the deflating Iranian currency, rising prices, and inability to provide public services, the protests resulted in estimated 22,000 deaths, including more than 6,000 during the protests and 17,000 under investigation, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

Other sources place the death toll at 33,000 and higher, but Iranian officials said it was about 3,000.

The violations were followed by sharp criticisms from the UN and international human rights watchdogs. UN Special Rapporteur to Iran Mai Sato accused the Iran of utilizing "excessive lethal force” and claimed that thousands, including children, were subjected to arbitrary detention and killing as well as forced confessions.

In its documented cases during the war, Amnesty International said late last month that the Iranian authorities have executed four prisoners secretly and plan to send seven others to the death row, accusing Tehran of weaponizing "he death penalty to eradicate dissenting voices and further terrify people."

Meanwhile, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, head of Iran's judiciary, last week called on the country’s judicial and security agencies to “speed up” issuing sentences of executions and confiscation of property for “elements and agents of the aggressor enemy.”

Iran leads the retentionist states in terms of carrying out death penalty sentences, with at least 1,500 individuals executed in 2025, according to the UN.