Widespread repression persists in Iran despite president's promises - HRW

An Iranian woman walks on a street amid the 2023 implementation of new hijab surveillance in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2023.
An Iranian woman walks on a street amid the 2023 implementation of new hijab surveillance in Tehran, Iran, April 15, 2023.

Iranian authorities have continued to engage in widespread repression of women, ethnic and religious minorities and human rights defenders despite promises of change by the new president, Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

"The Iranian authorities’ ongoing repression exemplifies an assault on rights that disproportionately targets women and minorities," said Nahid Naghshbandi, acting Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch (HRW). "Yet, unchecked government oppression is deepening public defiance rather than silencing opposition."

Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, had promised voters to stop hijab patrols and violence against women. HRW had urged the president to to address rights abuses in July last year.

However, the HRW World Report 2025, which reviewed human rights practices in more than 100 countries said that the Iranian government has continued its crackdown on political dissent, arresting activists, lawyers and students while also targeting families of those killed or executed during the nationwide 2022-2023 protests sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini.

Many human rights defenders, journalists and dissidents are facing long prison sentences after unfair trials, with many denied basic services, including medical care.

The report added that the Baha'i religious minority, particularly women, has been subjected to intensified persecution, with dozens arrested and sentenced to prison in 2024. Human Rights Watch condemned the repression as a violation of fundamental rights, calling it a "crime against humanity."

The report also shed light on the mistreatment of Kurdish border couriers, known as Kolbars, who face lethal force from authorities while transporting goods between Iran and Iraq.

"The international community should address the escalating repression in Iran and hold Iranian authorities accountable," Naghshbandi added.

Iran, the report continued, was one of the top five countries for executions in 2023, with more than 400 people executed in the first half of 2024 alone.