Death Sentences for Two Young Baloch Men
In a continuation of the widespread crackdown on detainees from the 2022 nationwide protests in Iran, the Revolutionary Court in Zahedan sentenced two young Baloch men, Yasin Kabdani and Mohammad Darvish Narouei, to death on charges of “enmity against God (moharebeh)” and “corruption on earth” on Monday, June 16, 2025. At the same time, concerns have intensified regarding the fate of Benyamin Kouhkan, a 16-year-old boy who was arrested in the same case.
Unfair Trial and Complete Lack of Information on a Detained Minor
According to reliable human rights sources, on the same day, the final hearing for all three defendants was held. Following the session, Benyamin Kouhkan was transferred from the juvenile correctional ward to solitary confinement. Since then, he has had no contact with his family, and judicial authorities have refused to provide any official information about his condition or the status of his case.
As with many similar cases in recent years, the charges against these three individuals are based on confessions obtained under severe physical and psychological torture—confessions that the Islamic Republic’s judiciary has repeatedly used without presenting credible legal evidence, often under direct pressure from security forces.
Torture, Threats, and Intimidation of Families
Yasin Kabdani (age 20) and Mohammad Darvish Narouei (age 21) were both arrested in Zahedan in January 2023. Yasin, who was only 18 at the time, was detained along with his father while traveling to Kerman. His father was released a day later, but Yasin remained in custody, where he was subjected to severe torture. Meanwhile, Mohammad Darvish Narouei was also tried swiftly and sentenced to death without due process or a fair trial.
Benyamin Kouhkan, a 16-year-old considered a minor under international law at the time of his arrest, has reportedly endured repeated physical, psychological, and even sexual torture, and was coerced into making false confessions. In a legally questionable procedure, he was sent to the Legal Medicine Organization in November 2023 for an unconventional “mental age” evaluation—seemingly an attempt to strip him of his legal protection as a child.
Security Forces Interfering in Judicial Process
The case against these three individuals is a clear example of judicial misconduct, security pressure, denial of the rights of the accused, and a total lack of fair trial standards. Although Yasin Kabdani had previously been sentenced to 15 years in prison—a verdict currently under review by the Supreme Court—he has now been sentenced to death in a new case, apparently as a result of continued pressure from the Ministry of Intelligence and other security agencies.
This pressure has not been limited to the defendants themselves. Their families have also been repeatedly harassed and summoned. In an extraordinary development, the Zahedan Intelligence Office coerced the family of the alleged victim to file a complaint against Benyamin Kouhkan and two of his relatives by conditioning the payment of diya (blood money) on their cooperation. The authorities even threatened the victim’s family with arrest on charges of “complicity in murder” should they refuse to comply.
