In Mullahs’ Iran, Torture Is a Tool of Governance

Documented Report on the Occasion of June 26

 International Day in Support of Victims of Torture

Introduction

June 26, the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, marks the global commitment to ending one of the most brutal and inhumane forms of human rights violations. This prohibition is not only enshrined in the United Nations Convention against Torture (CAT, adopted in 1984), but also in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and customary international law. It stands as a definitive and non-derivable norm.

According to the UN Convention against Torture: “Torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for purposes such as obtaining a confession, punishment, intimidation or coercion, by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official.”

In Iran under the rule of the mullahs, torture is not only tolerated—it is structurally embedded as a tool for repression, control, and silencing dissent in society.

The Prohibition of Torture as a Non-Derivable Principle in International Law (Jus Cogens)

Under international law, the prohibition of torture is a jus cogens norm—a peremptory rule from which no derogation is permitted, even in exceptional circumstances such as war, public emergency, or national threat.

According to this principle:

• No state may legalize torture through domestic laws or bilateral agreements;
• States are obliged to prosecute or extradite individuals responsible for torture (aut dedere aut judicare);
• The use of confessions obtained under torture in legal proceedings is strictly forbidden.

“The prohibition of torture is a universal, absolute, and non-negotiable principle.” — United Nations Committee Against Torture

This legal status imposes binding obligations on all states, including non-parties to CAT, such as the ruling regime in Iran.

Historical Context of Torture in Iran under the Rule of the Mullahs

Since the early years following the establishment of the clerical regime in 1979, torture has been systematically used as a tool to suppress political opponents, extract forced confessions and intimidate the general population.

In the 1980s, thousands of political prisoners—mostly members and sympathizers of organizations such as the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), Fadaiyan-e-Khalq, and other dissident groups—were subjected to brutal forms of physical and psychological torture. Survivor testimonies describe routine practices such as flogging the soles of the feet (falaka), suspension from ceilings, rape, electric shocks, and total sleep deprivation.

In the following decades—particularly after nationwide protests in 2009, 2017, 2019, and most notably in 2022—torture was once again employed with renewed intensity. The judiciary and security apparatus of the regime did not abandon torture; instead, by embedding it within legal structures and blocking independent oversight, they institutionalized it into a lasting and systematic practice.

Documented Realities of Torture in Iranian Prisons

Types of Torture:
Political prisoners in prisons and security detention centers are routinely subjected to diverse forms of torture. These include: severe beatings, flogging, use of electric shock devices and pepper spray, prolonged solitary confinement (known as white torture), mock executions, and sexual assault.

Sexual Torture and Rape

Reports by Amnesty International and first-hand testimonies from detainees in ethnic minority regions—including Kurdish, Baluchi, and Azerbaijani areas—confirm the widespread use of sexual violence by security forces.
These violations include:

• Gang rape
• Penetration using objects
• Coerced nudity and sexual humiliation
  These methods are used to extract forced confessions and to break the will of detainees.

Mass Executions and Inhuman Punishments

According to credible reports, more than 99 executions were recorded in January 2025 alone, many of which followed torture and forced confessions.
Amnesty International has also documented cases of amputation of prisoners’ fingers as a form of punishment—an act considered a clear violation of international human rights law and amounting to torture.

Psychological Torture and Forced Confessions

Iranian authorities systematically broadcast forced confessions on state television.
These confessions are extracted under severe physical and psychological torture and are used to:

• Undermine protest movements,
• Demonize civil society actors,
• Justify harsh sentences, including executions.

Such tactics constitute not only a violation of the right to a fair trial, but also a form of continued psychological abuse, both against detainees and their families.

Inhuman Conditions of Detention

Iran’s prisons are marked by appalling conditions.
Detainees are held:

• In solitary confinement cells without beds or toilets,
• In severely overcrowded wards,
• With limited access to food, clean drinking water, and medical care.

These conditions, as documented by numerous international organizations, constitute structural torture and violate the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules).

Testimonies from International Human Rights Organizations

• The UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran (FFMI), in its March 2024 report, confirmed that Iranian authorities under the mullahs’ regime have systematically committed torture, rape, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings—especially during the 2022 protests.
• Amnesty International, in its detailed 2020 report titled “Trampled Justice: Iran’s Bloody Confessions”, emphasized that torture is routinely used in Iran to extract confessions, prosecute, and sentence individuals to death.
• Javaid Rehman, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, stated in his annual reports (2021–2024):

“Torture in Iran is not an occasional violation; it is a deliberate, institutionalized policy embedded in the state’s security and judicial structures.”

• The UN Committee Against Torture also noted that:

“Authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran have consistently failed to investigate allegations of torture and have instead prosecuted and punished victims who speak out.”

• The most recent report by Amnesty International (December 6, 2023) revealed extensive use of sexual violence by security forces against detainees, especially during the 2022 uprising.

Target Groups of Torture in Iran

The 2022 Uprising: Peak of Structural Violence

During the nationwide protests of 2022 (“Women, Life, Freedom”), the mullahs’ regime deliberately used torture as a method of mass repression.

According to the FFMI (March 2024):

• Women and girls in Sanandaj, Zahedan, and Tehran were subjected to rape, electric shocks, and prolonged solitary confinement.
• Javaid Rehman reported that Baluchi women were held in undisclosed locations without legal orders or family contact.
• Children were subjected to white torture (extreme sensory deprivation) and transferred at night to interrogation rooms for forced confessions.

These acts constitute grave violations of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, ICCPR, and the Convention Against Torture, and in many cases, meet the threshold of crimes against humanity.

Judicial Torture: From Cell to Execution

In Iran under the mullahs’ rule, forced confessions extracted under torture are not the exception—they are central to the judiciary’s function.
Trials are often held without defense lawyers, and sentences are based almost entirely on confessions obtained through coercion and abuse.

According to the UN Secretary-General’s report (June 2025), more than 900 executions were carried out in Iran in 2024. Many of these cases involved:

• Denial of legal counsel
• Confessions extracted under torture
• Summary and secret trials

Forced confessions are often aired on state television, turning torture into both a tool of suppression and public propaganda.

Notable Victims Who Died Under Torture

• Sina Ghanbari – Age 22, died in custody at Kahrizak detention center in January 2018. Officially ruled a suicide, but reports indicated severe beatings.
• Kavous Seyed-Emami – Environmentalist and university professor, died in Evin Prison in February 2018. Family and forensic experts rejected the suicide claim.
• Navid Afkari – Champion wrestler, executed in September 2020. He had publicly documented electric shocks, beatings, and threats of sexual assault during interrogation.
• Vahid Sayadi Nasiri – Political activist, died in December 2018 following a hunger strike and lack of medical care. Reports point to psychological and physical torture.
• Farzad Kamangar – Kurdish teacher, executed in May 2010 after being tortured and convicted based solely on coerced confessions.
• Tiyam Yazdanpanah – A 17-year-old Baluchi boy arrested in Zahedan during the 2022 protests. According to local sources, he died under torture in a detention facility operated by the IRGC.

International Condemnations

Conclusion and Call to Action

The clerical regime in Iran does not view torture as a crime—it sees it as an instrument of governance. On this International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, we call on the international community to take urgent and coordinated action:

1. Identify and sanction intelligence, judicial, and security officials responsible for torture.
2. Initiate international prosecutions under the principle of universal jurisdiction.
3. Strengthen and renew the mandates of the UN Fact-Finding Mission and the Special Rapporteur on Iran.
4. Establish an independent inquiry into sexual violence and child torture in Iranian detention centers.
5. Provide medical, psychological, and legal support to torture survivors and their families.

Silence is complicity. Justice is a shared responsibility.