Death Sentence Issued for 67-Year-Old Political Prisoner Zahra Shahbaz Tabari After a 10-Minute Hearing Without Independent Counsel
27-October-2025
Category: Prisoners
25 October 2025
News group: Prisoners –
Breathing in Confinement – Ms. Zahra Shahbaz Tabari, a political prisoner held in Rasht Prison, has been sentenced to death by Branch 1 of the Rasht Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Ahmad Darvish-Goftar, on the charge of “collaboration with the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK).”
According to Breathing in Confinement, the news organ of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, Ms. Shahbaz Tabari, 67 years old, was arrested on 18 April 2025 at her home in the city of Rasht. During the arrest, security forces confiscated her personal belongings, including her mobile phone and laptop, as well as items belonging to another member of her family.
Based on obtained information, her trial was conducted by video conference, without the presence of a lawyer of her own choosing, and lasted less than ten minutes. According to sources close to the family, the lawyer assigned to her case was selected from a list of state-approved attorneys and was not in a position to provide an independent defence.
Her child stated: “The entire proceeding was performative. My mother has had no connection with opposition groups, and the accusations against her are completely fabricated.”
Issuing a death sentence against an older detainee, especially through a process lacking transparency, judicial independence, and any meaningful opportunity to defend herself, is a blatant violation of the fundamental fair-trial guarantees set out in Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran expresses serious concern for Ms. Zahra Shahbaz Tabari’s physical and psychological condition, and calls for the immediate reversal of the death sentence, guaranteed access to an independent lawyer of her choice, and a public, fair hearing in accordance with international standards.