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In December 2024, human rights defender Reza Khandan was arrested at his home and taken into custody at a police station in Tehran. His crime? Advocating against Iran’s compulsory veiling laws and the death penalty. Now in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison, Reza faces a three-and-a-half-year sentence (on top of time already served) for supporting women’s rights in Iran.
On January 21 at 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m. PT, join us for a panel discussion on Reza’s imprisonment, Iran’s oppressive crackdown on dissent, and the price of allyship in the fight for women’s rights and freedom of choice in Iran.
Background
Reza Khandan is a dedicated human rights defender and the husband of renowned women’s rights activist and lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh. For decades, Reza has been a vocal advocate against Iran’s compulsory veiling laws and the death penalty. In 2019, Reza was unjustly sentenced in absentia by Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court to six years in prison on fabricated charges of “gathering and collusion with the intent to act against national security” and “propaganda activities against the state.” His only crime was producing and distributing “I Oppose the Mandatory Hijab” buttons in support of women’s rights and freedom of expression.

In December 2024, the Court of Appeals reduced Reza’s sentence to three years and six months. Shortly after, Reza was arrested at his home and taken into custody at a police station in Tehran. On December 14, 2024, he was transferred to Iran’s Evin Court and subsequently to the infamous Evin Prison, where he has remained detained ever since. Reza’s wife, Nasrin, was barred from visiting him during this time due to not wearing the compulsory hijab.
Nasrin rose to prominence after the 2009 anti-government protests, known as the Green Revolution, following Iran’s presidential elections. In the courts and on the streets, Nasrin has long fought for the rights of women, children, religious minorities, journalists and artists, and those facing the death penalty.
Nasrin has been frequently imprisoned, including in solitary confinement, since 2010. In March 2019, she was sentenced to a total of 38 years in prison and 148 lashes on made-up charges, including stoking “corruption and prostitution.” During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Nasrin went on hunger strikes to protest the continued arbitrary detention of political prisoners amid abysmal conditions in Iranian prisons. In November 2020, Nasrin was temporarily released with the consent of the prosecutor in charge of women’s prisons to allow her to undergo treatment for her heart. However, in October of 2023, Nasrin was assaulted and re-arrested while attending the funeral of Armita Garawand, who activists say was beaten to death by Tehran’s morality police. Garawand’s death echoes Mahsa Amini’s, whose alleged killing invigorated a feminist movement in Iran – “Woman, Life, Freedom.” One month later, Nasrin was released on bail, and she still faces charges of national security and for disregarding the mandatory veiling laws.
Meet the Panelists





Nasrin Sotoudeh, Iranian lawyer, women’s rights activist, recipient of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought and the Right Livelihood Award, and wife of political prisoner Reza Khandan
Jeff Kaufman, Award-winning director and producer (Floating World Pictures) and playwright
Nicholas Kristof, Pulitzer-Prize winning New York Times Opinion columnist
Viviana Krsticevic, Executive Director of the Center for Justice and International Law, and Member of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran
Moderator: Kerry Kennedy, President of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Join Us
We call on Iran to end the ongoing campaign of harassment and intimidation directed at Reza and his family for their courageous efforts to protect women from discrimination and humiliation. Stand with us by joining the January 21 webinar and signing the petition to call for Reza’s immediate release from prison.