Today, Wednesday, September 16, 2026, coinciding with the fourth anniversary of the state-sanctioned killing of Zhina-Mahsa Amini and following calls by Kurdish political parties, dozens of cities across the four provinces of Kurdistan, West Azerbaijan, Kermanshah, and Ilam joined a general strike despite a severe security-military atmosphere and government threats and pressure; Saqqez, Sanandaj, Mahabad, and Bukan saw the most widespread strikes. Simultaneously, the government acted to suppress and prevent the spread of the strikes by extensively deploying security and military forces, blocking access routes to Aichi Cemetery, preventing the families of those killed from visiting their graves, threatening shopkeepers and merchants, and sending threatening text messages; since yesterday, at least 7 Kurdish citizens in Oshnavieh, Mahabad, and Qorveh have been arrested and transferred to undisclosed locations.

This report is compiled and published based on the monitoring of hundreds of videos received by Kurdpa from various cities, as well as field reports from dozens of informed sources in these cities over past days. According to these reports and images:

The cities of Saqqez and Sanandaj in Kurdistan Province, and Mahabad and Bukan in West Azerbaijan Province, had the most widespread and prominent strikes, respectively, and were in a general strike from early morning until evening; to the extent that in Saqqez, even the automotive service and repair sector was completely closed.

Dozens of other cities—including Divandarreh, Kermanshah, Karand-e Gharb, Harsin, Urmia, Kamyaran, Bijar, Salas-e Babajani, Paveh, Piranshahr, Marivan, Rabat, Dehgolan, Qorveh, Takab, Oshnavieh, and Ilam, across the four provinces of Kurdistan, West Azerbaijan, Kermanshah, and Ilam—participated in the strike ranging from 20% to 50%, and in some cities higher than this level, despite widespread threats and pressures. The extent of the strike varied at different hours, and in some cities, security and plainclothes forces forced a number of shopkeepers to reopen their shops through extensive threats. Furthermore, in cities with mixed Kurdish and Turkic populations, such as Urmia and Takab, mostly Kurdish citizens observed the strike.

It is worth noting that the strike was not limited only to closing shops and bazaars; rather, people in many cities remained at home, and the public space of the cities was extremely deserted—a matter visible in the received videos, including images of some open shops and severe emptiness on roads and city centers.

These pressures and threats have continued in various forms over the past days alongside the call from Kurdish political parties; including imposing a heavy security atmosphere, particularly in Saqqez, in such a way that all routes were blocked and military and security forces were deployed along them. Additionally, in previous days, special meetings were held at the governorship and the Amaken (Public Places Supervision Office) of each city to threaten and pressure shopkeepers, and security forces contacted merchants and shopowners, threatening them against closing their shops.

Furthermore, none of the families of the dozens of "Woman, Life, Freedom" victims were able to gather at their children's graves. In this regard, on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, coinciding with the fourth anniversary of the state-sanctioned killing of Zhina-Mahsa Amini and widespread strikes in dozens of Kurdish cities, Amjad Amini and Mozhgan Eftekhari, Zhina's father and mother, published messages on Instagram referencing the blockade of routes leading to Aichi Cemetery and the prevention of visiting their daughter's grave.

On the other hand, threatening text messages had been sent to citizens and market merchants in recent days, declaring participation in the strike a "criminal" act and threatening that participants would be dealt with as "counter-revolutionaries and separatists," while asking citizens to report these individuals to law enforcement and police forces. Following the suppression and killing of thousands of people in the wake of the January protests, the Islamic Republic has entered an all-out, even more unbridled phase of repression, adopting increasingly violent measures against the public.

Examples of reports detailing widespread state pressure and threats to prevent strikes:

In recent days, the head of the trade unions association and municipal governorships held special meetings to confront and pressure merchants and trade guilds with the goal of preventing strikes from taking place.

The atmosphere in Saqqez, as Zhina's hometown and the location of her burial site, had become entirely militarized and securitized days in advance; in particular, Aichi Cemetery and all access routes leading to it were sealed off, and today even a grieving family was prevented from visiting their deceased relative's grave at Aichi Cemetery, with only a few individuals permitted to carry out the burial ceremony.

Additionally, plainclothes personnel in private vehicles were patrolling and monitoring conditions throughout the city of Saqqez. Received images indicate the deployment of suppression forces and special anti-riot units in front of the Saqqez Governorship. The imposition of a security and military state upon Saqqez continues, and up to the time of this report's publication, according to Kurdpa sources, the area surrounding Karimabad Square in Saqqez is filled with security personnel, plainclothes agents, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces, and armed anti-riot special units. These forces have taken control of all alleys using private vehicles, fearing public gatherings. A large number of forces were also positioned in the dark, subjecting passing vehicles to searches. Furthermore, at Dokhaniyat Square and extending toward Keshtargah Street, military personnel and plainclothes forces were stationed at intervals from one another.

In cities such as Sardasht and Marivan, where strikes were widespread from the start, security forces forcibly opened people's shops. In Marivan, the city's atmosphere was heavily militarized, and suppression forces—including plainclothes personnel, law enforcement, and local IRGC forces known as "Jash"—seeing the strike's extent, used coercion and threats to force several merchants to reopen, especially shopkeepers whose stores were in clear public view. Despite this, most shopping arcades and covered bazaars remained closed, observing over a 40% strike rate.

At the Dehgolan-to-Sanandaj entrance, checkpoints were set up, with Basij, IRGC, and law enforcement forces patrolling, while reports indicated closed shops and deserted streets.

In Mahabad, where the strike was exceptionally widespread, local IRGC forces ("Jash") out of desperation began filming the storefronts of striking merchants.

In the city of Urmia, in predominantly Kurdish-populated districts, over 50% of shopkeepers and merchants struck despite intense pressure and threats, with the strike expanding notably in the afternoon—including in Shahrak-e Sepah, Valiasr, Islamabad, Badki, Shahrak-e Farhangian-e Shomali, and Qahveh-Qabaghi. In the central bazaar, over 30% of shopowners struck, while law enforcement and plainclothes forces were deployed across the city despite the security atmosphere.

In a city like Bukan, the government attempted to draw people to the market on September 16 by promoting stores with special discounts—including the inauguration of the "Jambo Zeytun Shomali" store on Erfan Street; nevertheless, Bukan remained among the cities with the most extensive strikes.

Saqqez, Zhina's Hometown, Facing the Highest Level of Military-Security Lockdown Since Yesterday:

  • September 14, 2026: Images received by Kurdpa indicated that as part of the ongoing policy to securitize Aichi Cemetery, both the municipality and the Ministry of Intelligence constructed larger, taller mounting posts to expand CCTV surveillance coverage along the Saqqez–Aichi road.
  • September 15, 2026: Reports and images received by Kurdpa showed that water from the Chaghar Weis Dam in Saqqez was released for consecutive years on the eve of the fourth anniversary of Zhina-Mahsa Amini's state-sanctioned killing to submerge and restrict rural secondary paths to Aichi Cemetery, blocking access routes to her grave. Main roads were likewise controlled by security and military forces deployed with vehicles and equipment.
  • Images received by Kurdpa from Tuesday, September 15, 2026, showed dozens of suppression vehicles, anti-riot units, motorcycles, and suppression vans entering central Saqqez from surrounding highways.
  • Reports from Kurdpa sources up through the evening of Tuesday, September 15, 2026, confirmed an escalating security-military posture in Saqqez, marked by armored vehicles patrolling main squares, dozens of armed personnel in unmarked private vehicles cordoning off the road to Aichi Cemetery, and the closure of its primary access points.
  • Kurdpa sources report that within the city, main squares and streets—especially along Enghelab Boulevard toward the prison on the Saqqez–Baneh road—were heavily garrisoned. Checkpoints and patrolling units consisting of military, security, and plainclothes personnel were established at the prison roundabout, Qods Square, other major city squares, as well as city entrances from Baneh, Sanandaj, and Bukan.

At Least 7 Kurdish Citizens Arrested Since Yesterday, with Risks of Further Arrests:

Coinciding with widespread strikes across Kurdish cities, a wave of arrests targeting Kurdish citizens began yesterday:

  • In Oshnavieh, "Rahim Arshadi," "Soran Bayazidi," "Fakhraddin Ebrahimi," and "Reza Rashidnia" were violently arrested without judicial warrants during raids by plainclothes security forces and transferred to undisclosed locations. Fakhraddin Ebrahimi is the son of "Mohyaddin Ebrahimi," an executed Kurdish political prisoner; live ammunition was fired during his arrest.
  • In Mahabad, "Hiwa Abdollahi" was arrested at his workplace, and "Hassel Faqri-Asl," a 31-year-old resident of Kahrizeh Sheikhan village, was arrested at his home without a judicial warrant before being transferred to an unknown location.
  • In Qorveh, "Rashid Hessami," a teacher, was violently arrested following a raid on his home without a warrant, after which his residence was searched.

The fate and whereabouts of these citizens remain unknown, and they are denied legal counsel, phone calls, and family visitation. Reports also point to the likelihood of continued arrests targeting more citizens, particularly in cities where shopkeepers and merchants participated in the strikes.

History of General Strikes Commemorating the Anniversary of Zhina-Mahsa Amini's State-Sanctioned Killing:

Since 2022, following the state-sanctioned killing of Zhina-Mahsa Amini, calls by Iranian Kurdish political parties for general strikes met widespread participation from trade guilds and shopkeepers across various cities—a tradition that continued through 2023 and 2024. In 2025, even in the absence of formal calls from political parties, citizens in many Kurdish cities, particularly Saqqez, spontaneously observed general strikes.

With this year's call, the coalition of Kurdish political parties emphasized the strike as an act of loyalty to Zhina, "Woman, Life, Freedom," and those who lost their lives for freedom; a historic "No" to the Islamic Republic and its inhumane policies; and a display of solidarity among the people of Kurdistan against repression, discrimination, and economic crisis.

Compiled by: Awin Mostafazadeh