Sanandaj; Sentence of Golelah Vatandoost, Attorney and Women's Rights Activist, Commuted to Electronic Ankle Monitor Monitoring June 23, 2026
June 23, 2026; Golelah Vatandoost, a practicing attorney, women's rights activist, a detainee of the "Woman, Life, Freedom" revolutionary uprising, and a Kurdish citizen from Marivan, will spend the remainder of her sentence under the supervision of an electronic ankle monitor following a court ruling. She had introduced herself to the Central Prison of Sanandaj in recent weeks to serve her sentence.
An informed source, while confirming this news, told Kurdpa: In late June 2026, her prison sentence was commuted to electronic ankle monitor monitoring, and after being released from prison, she returned to her place of residence in Marivan with the electronic ankle monitor. According to this source, Golelah Vatandoost personally represented herself in all stages of the case proceedings and objected to the severity of the determined punishment several times, but the issued verdict did not change.
Previously, Kurdpa reported on January 19, 2024, that Golelah Vatandoost had been sentenced to 6 years and 7 months of suspended imprisonment. However, it has not been clarified at what stage and through what process this sentence was converted into discretionary imprisonment.
According to Kurdpa's previous report, Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Sanandaj, presided over by Judge "Karamai," had sentenced Golelah Vatandoost to 6 years and 7 months of imprisonment on charges of "acting against national security through forming or managing groups," "assembly and collusion against national security," and "propaganda against the regime through painting a dark picture of the situation."
On the other hand, the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teacher Trade Associations announced on June 20, 2026, that the discretionary prison sentence of 6 years, 7 months, and 20 days for this attorney had been put into effect as of May 2, 2026, and she was transferred to the Central Prison of Sanandaj to serve her sentence. She had begun her term in the Juvenile Correction and Rehabilitation Center section of this prison, which is the holding facility for female prisoners.
Golelah Vatandoost was arrested by security forces in Sanandaj on October 3, 2022, during the "Woman, Life, Freedom" revolutionary uprising. Following 16 days of detention, she was released from Sanandaj Prison on October 19, 2022, upon posting a bail of one billion Tomans.
Prior to that, on February 22, 2021, this women's rights activist had been summoned to the Intelligence Department of Marivan and interrogated due to publishing materials in defense of women's rights on social networks.
For years, Golelah Vatandoost was active in the legal practice of cases related to "femicide" and "violence against women." However, following her arrest and the issuance of the judicial verdict, she lost the possibility of continuing her legal practice in these cases. She is also the author of numerous articles in the field of women's rights and has carried out legal activities concerning women's issues and gender discrimination.
