Testimony addressing Torture and obstruction of Justice: The story of Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri of 130 Days in Detention Under Systematic Torture and Violence

Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri, a farmer age 47 residing in a village near Tikan-Tappeh Bokan County, married and the father of three children, was arrested on April 17, 2023, during the “Jin, Jian, Azadi” movement in Kurdistan for providing medical aid to the injured during protests in Bokan and providing medications and treatment supplies. He remained in detention for 130 days, most of which were spent in solitary confinement under severe physical and psychological torture. Subsequently, he was tried under a joint case with three others on the charge of "aiding and abetting homicide" at the “West Azerbaijan province” criminal court, and on January 15, 2024, he was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment without parole.

The following report relies on an open testimony published by Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri from within the Urmia Central Prison. It presents a detailed and documented accounts of torture, threats, an unjust legal process, and the structure of repression in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

This narrative serves both as a tangible document of gross human rights violations and as an example of the political and ethnic repression model employed within the security and judicial framework of the government in Iran.

From Arrest to the initiation of Systematic and Targeted Torture Over 130 Days,

From the moment of his arrest on April 17, 2023, Rezar Beigzadeh Babamiri entered a cycle of organized violence that, according to his own testimony, became a “daily routine” in the detention facility of the Intelligence Agency in Wirmê (Urmia). For over 130 days, he was held primarily in solitary confinement, enduring severe physical and psychological torture, measures designed not to extract the truth but to dismantle his character, impose terror, and extract coerced confessions.

In his testimony, Babamiri states: “In addition to having bruises all over my body, lost hearing in my left ear due to frequent punches to my head by interrogators. It took three months for my hearing to gradually return. During this time, I suffered from numerous severe infections. The marks of beating remain visible on my shins.”

These tortures occurred in conditions where, not only no independent oversight body had access to his case, but he also noted that the torture was systematically inflicted in covert and away from any external scrutiny. Deprived of access to a legal representation, lack of access to medical care, and repeated threats of execution contributed to an atmosphere of ongoing terror during his detention. For Babamiri, torture was not a auxiliary tool but a central component of the interrogation process.

Threats of Execution, No Prosecution for Tormentors, Denial of Justice and dismissal of plead.

Following the transfer of Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri to Wirmê (Urmia) Central Prison, the threats and pressures did not cease but rather assumed a new form. Intelligence agents explicitly threatened him that if he pursued legal pursuit regarding the torture, he would face charges such as “corruption on Earth”(crimes against humanity) and would be met with the death penalty. Nevertheless, Babamiri ultimately pursuit legal action against the violations committed by his interrogators and the case investigator.

He writes: “From the very first days, despite threats, I made every effort to legally pursue the torture I suffered. However, after months of delays and obstructions, I finally managed to file a complaint.”

Ultimately, his complaint, registered under case number 140335920002257834, was submitted to the Urmia Public and Revolutionary Court and referred to the military court of the West Azerbaijan province. However, the deputy prosecutor of the first branch of the military court, instead of seriously pursuing the matter, dismissed the the case saying “the incident had occurred more than a year ago,” effectively closing the case. He even declined to refer Babamiri for a medical examination, an action that unmistakably signifies the denial of the right to prove torture within the Iranian judicial system.

Babamiri comments on this situation: “The only evidence a torture victim has to substantiate the crimes committed against them is the physical scars left on their body. When they even refuse to allow a neutral physician to examine me, it means the system not only denies torture but actively supports the tormentors.”

This experience stands as one of the most obvious examples of the impunity granted to human rights violators and the systematic denial of the right to justice.

From Torture in Cells to insult in Court: How Justice is Humiliated in the Islamic Republic?

The Revolutionary Court hearing in Wirmê (Urmia), which should have been an opportunity to hear the accounts of the victims and to examine torture allegations, became yet another instance of insult and denial. Rezgar beigzadeh Babamiri and other defendants presented the details of the torture inflicted upon them with precision and evidence throughout the hearings, calling for judicial review and referral to medical authorities. However, the response from Judge Reza Najafzadeh was not only indifferent but openly humiliating, as he asked, “Did you expect them to grill for you?”

This statement from the judge, according to Babamiri, is not merely a personal remark, but a representation of the true condition of the Iranian judicial system, where humiliation replaces the pursuit of truth, and the judge, instead of being a guarantor of the law, serves the interests of authorities. Babamiri writes: “The independence of the court in this country is nothing more than a myth. The tormentors operate with complete impunity while the victima are subjected to pressure, threats, and compounded punishment.”

This experience presents a clear image of institutionalized injustice within Revolutionary Courts, a system that not only remains silent in the face of torture but normalizes and justifies it.

Torture, Fabrication of Cases, and Ethnic cleansing: How the Iranian Security Structure Operates?

In analyzing what he endured, Rezagar Beigzadeh Babamiri, rising above his individual experience, deconstructs the operations of security and judicial institutions in the Islamic Republic. He explicitly asserts that security forces act not to protect the community, but to enforce the political will and ideological biases of the ruling regime: “Security forces do not function to maintain security but rather to justify higher officials and enact blind ethnic and sectarian stereotypes. Torture and case fabrication are ordinary tools of repression and fearmongering. Unchecked power transforms a law enforcement agent into a ruthless enemy of the law.”

Babamiri believes that what transpired during his arrest, torture and trial is not an exception or deviation, but part of a systematic and institutionalized pattern in Iran’s criminal justice structure. A pattern marked by ethnic discrimination against Kurds, the misuse of legal tools for political revenge, and the complete absence of accountability mechanisms.

An Appeal to International institutions: The Duty Amid Structural Crimes,

In concluding his testimony, Rezagar Beigzadeh Babamiri considers silence not just an ethical failure but a complicity in crime. He addresses international bodies, human rights activists, and the international community, emphasizing the necessity to confront the cycle of impunity, torture, and repression, not as a plea for individual aid, but as a call for international action.

He states: “If human rights violations and torture in Iran are not systemic, then why do judicial institutions ignore the complaints of victims? Why is the victim threatened with further punishment including execution? Why should providing assistance to the injured be met with such punishment?”

He warns: “Human rights organizations, the United Nations, the International Criminal Court, free media, and mindful individuals must not remain silent in the face of these ongoing crimes. Human dignity must not be so easily violated.”

The Testimony of Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri: A Testimony Against Oblivion, a Call for Collective Responsibility.

The testimony of Rezagar Beigzadeh Babamiri is not merely a narrative of the sufferings of a political prisoner; it is a living proof and a clear testimony to the organized structure of repression, torture, humiliation of justice, and the deliberate impunity of human rights violators in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

This account emerges from the depths of solitary confinement and silent courts to confront oblivion, a tool of power. Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri shares this testimony not to seek sympathy but to document truth and impose accountability to keep alive what the regime seeks to bury: the torture that was denied, the outcry that was mocked, the complaint that was dismissed, and the dignity that was trampled.

This narrative now rests in our hands, placing a responsibility upon all of us, from human rights defenders, international organizations, and the media to independent individuals, to transform it into a legal and documented account of torture and organized violence in the Islamic Republic.

Complete and Objective script of the Testimony and narrative of Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri:

"From April 17, 2023, to September 1 of 2023, this inhumane situation persisted more or less. Despite the threatening statements of security agents following my transfer to Wirmê (Urmia) Central Prison, from the very first days, I made every effort to reflect the torture and other violations committed against me by the investigators and interrogators in case number 140235920000915742 to the judicial authorities.

After months of delays and stalling, I ultimately succeeded in filing a complaint against the torturing investigators and interrogators of the intelligence department. Case number 140335920002257834 was opened at the Wirmê (Urmia) Public Court and subsequently referred to the military court of the West Azerbaijan province. after several weeks, yet the deputy prosecutor of the first branch of the military court, under the pretext of the “more than year” since the incident, issued a no-Motion order concerning the torturer and refused to refer me to forensic medicine, effectively denying any prosecution against human rights violators and granting them impunity.

It is evident that torture is an inhumane crime carried out in covert, away from witnesses and cameras, and the only evidence a torture victim can provide to substantiate the crimes committed against them is the physical marks of torture on their body. Preventing access to a neutral physician essentially amounts to creating immunity and protecting tormentors and human rights violators. If human rights violations and torture are truly not systemic, then why do the relevant courts remain silent in the face of victims' complaints? How is it possible that an intelligence agency threaten me, a victim of their wrong doing while still in their custody with execution for filing a complaint about the tortures? And why is there no accountability and no law to defend the victim? Why should providing humanitarian aid to those injured come with such repercussions?

How can the Revolutionary Court in Wirmê (Urmia) and Judge Reza Najafzadeh, despite the motions submitted by me and the other defendants, respond to the claims of torture from the victims with such shameful remarks like “Did you expect them to grill for you?” The independence of the court in this country is nothing more than a myth. The torturer operates with complete impunity, while the victim is subjected to threats, pressure, and compounded punishment.

The aim of security forces is not to maintain public order but to justify higher authorities and impose blind ethnic and sectarian stereotypes. Torture and case fabrication are common practices and tools in the hands of oppressive figures. I urge the public, NGOs, international communities, human rights organizations, free media, and independent individuals to not remain silent against these inhumane treatments.

During the 130 days of detention along with torture, in addition to the bruise marks on my entire body, I lost hearing in my left ear due to frequent punches in my head by the interrogators. I lost hearing for 3 months, eventually, my torn eardrum gradually regained hearing, but I suffered from ongoing severe infections.

The marks of beating are still visible on my shins, and an ENT specialist can confirm the injuries inflicted on my ear two years ago. Nevertheless, my repeated complaints regarding torture went unanswered, and the Revolutionary Court displayed no concern to my statements or those of my co-defendants, apart from Judge Reza Najafzadeh's remark. It seems that torture is payback for anyone who assists their fellow human beings, and this judge views torture as normal routine.

Granting power without oversight, alongside biased sectarian and ethnic discrimination, unfulfilled personal grudges, material interests, promotions, and increased power transforms a law enforcement agents into ruthless enemies of the law, trampling over all boundaries of humanity to temporarily subdue their insatiable thirst for violence and cruelty. In this way, the prevailing totalitarian system infuses the fear it seeks to impose upon its subjects.

The civilized world and free minded individuals must not remain silent in the face of this organized and sometimes justified violence. Human rights institutions and entities like the International Criminal Court should not stand by in the face of these ongoing crimes; human dignity cannot continue to be trampled so easily.

End

Date: April 9, 2025

Central Prison -Urmia

Reception Unit 2

Rezgar Beigzadeh Babamiri**