October 1, 2026 — Over recent days, Rasul Yusefi Azar, a 23-year-old Kurdish youth from Mahabad, was arrested and transferred to Mahabad Central Prison to begin serving a six-month discretionary prison sentence (Habs-e Ta'ziri). He had previously spent 40 days in arbitrary detention at an undisclosed IRGC Intelligence facility before being sentenced on charges of "propaganda against the system."

An informed source told Kurdpa: "On Tuesday, September 29, 2026, Rasul Yusefi Azar, a 23-year-old Kurdish youth from Mahabad, was arrested and transferred to Mahabad Central Prison to serve his six-month discretionary sentence, which was issued by the Revolutionary Court of Mahabad on charges of 'propaganda against the system.'"

As previously reported by Kurdpa, Yusefi Azar was initially arrested on April 17, 2024, alongside Mohsen Ahmadi-Aqdam and Hassan Yusefi Azar, both residents of Bafravan village, during security force raids conducted without judicial warrants. They were subsequently transferred to an undisclosed security detention center for interrogation.

Yusefi Azar was held incommunicado and interrogated for 40 days at an IRGC Intelligence detention facility at an undisclosed location in Mahabad, after which he was temporarily released on bail. During his legal proceedings, the Revolutionary Court of Mahabad sentenced him to six months of discretionary imprisonment for "propaganda against the system."

Throughout his arbitrary detention in security detention centers, he was systematically denied access to legal representation and family visits.