A new report by UN Special Rapporteur Mai Sato, has laid bare the grave human rights violations taking place in Iran, with particular focus on gender-specific abuses, the use of the death penalty, and the treatment of detainees and prisoners. The report, presented at the 58th session of the Human Rights Council, details a pattern of repression and violence that disproportionately affects women, ethnic minorities, and political detainees.
One of the report’s most striking findings relates to the gendered nature of the state’s response to protests, especially those triggered by the death of Mahsa Jina Amini in 2022. Women and girls were systematically targeted not only for participating in demonstrations but also as a means of societal control. The report documents widespread sexual violence, including rape and threats of rape in detention, forced undressing, and targeting of female family members of male protesters. These acts were used deliberately to degrade and silence women, revealing deep-rooted institutional misogyny.
The report also condemns Iran's escalating use of the death penalty, noting a 43% increase in executions in 2023. At least 834 individuals were executed, many for non-violent drug offences. Disturbingly, the Baluch minority accounted for over 20% of executions despite making up only about 5% of the population. The opaque legal process, lack of fair trial guarantees, and the use of torture to extract confessions contribute to a justice system that the Special Rapporteur describes as "arbitrary and deeply unjust."
Conditions for detainees and prisoners remain harsh and degrading. Testimonies included in the report describe routine beatings, solitary confinement, denial of medical care, and inhumane detention conditions. In many cases, detainees were held without charge or access to legal representation, and subjected to physical and psychological torture.
The Special Rapporteur has called on the international community to take urgent action, including accountability mechanisms and pressure on Iranian authorities to halt the abuse. The report paints a grim but necessary picture of the Iranian state’s continued use of violence, discrimination, and fear to stifle dissent and maintain control.
The full report by the Special Rapporteur, Mai Sato, can be read here
