17 April 2026 :

April 16, 2026 - IRAN. Suspicious Death in Custody of Protester Abbas Yavari

Abbas Yavari, a January 2026 protester, was “killed under torture" after being transferred to an unknown location for interrogation.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a 31-year-old Ahwazi Arab protester named Abbas Yavari, who was arrested during the January 2026 protests in Shiraz, has died under suspicious circumstances in custody.

Abbas was arrested in January 2026 in Shiraz and transferred to Shiraz (Adel Abad) Central Prison in mid-February. He was reportedly transferred to an unknown location on 26 March, and his family was notified of his death on 29 March.

While prison officials have told his family that he committed suicide, an informed source told IHRNGO: "Abbas Yavari was subjected to severe torture to force false confessions to the murder of Basij agents during the January protests. He died as a result of these tortures, but authorities have declared the cause of death as suicide to evade responsibility."

Declaring suicide as the cause of death for prisoners who die under torture is a well-established practice by Islamic Republic authorities in Iran to avoid accountability.

https://iranhr.net/en/articles/8682/
https://hengaw.net/en/news/2026/04/article-50