Bojnurd; Mahmoud Shaddel, Kurmanji Kurd Detained in January, Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison

August 3, 2026 – "Mahmoud Shaddel," a 30-year-old Kurmanji Kurd citizen from Ashkhaneh in North Khorasan Province and a national motorcycle racing champion who was arrested during the January 2026 protests and subjected to severe torture during detention according to an informed source, was recently sentenced by the Revolutionary Court of Bojnurd County to 3 years of discretionary imprisonment.

An informed source, confirming this news, told Kurdpa: "Mahmoud Shaddel" was sentenced by Branch 2 of the Revolutionary Court of Bojnurd County, presided over by Judge "Seyyed Jafar Hashemi," on charges of "propaganda against the system" and "assembly and collusion against national security" to 3 years of discretionary imprisonment. This verdict was verbally communicated to him on July 11, 2026.

According to this source, this Kurdish citizen was deprived of the right to have a lawyer throughout all stages of the case proceedings and was also warned that if he appealed the verdict, he would face an increased sentence.

In late January 2026, approximately 10 days after the protests of January 8 and 9, "Mahmoud Shaddel" was arrested without a judicial warrant by security forces and transferred to an unknown location. Security forces also opened fire on his vehicle during his arrest. This informed source confirmed to Kurdpa that after being transferred to a detention center in an unknown location, he was subjected to severe torture, and during interrogations, "his toenails were pulled out" to force him to accept the charges, but he refused to confess. After two weeks of arbitrary detention, he was temporarily released on bail.

Throughout the entire period of arbitrary detention, this Kurdish citizen was deprived of the right to access a lawyer, family visits, and phone calls.