IRAN: Urgent call for intervention concerning the renewed arrest of Nasrin Sotoudeh and the continuing detention of Reza Khandan
The OIAD together with 29 organisations of the Coalition for the International Day of the Endangered Lawyer express their gravest concern at the renewed arrest of Nasrin Sotoudeh, one of Iran’s most prominent human rights lawyers and one of the most respected members of the international legal community. According to multiple recent reports, during the night of 1–2 April 2026 Ms Sotoudeh was arrested at her home in Tehran by agents reportedly affiliated with the Ministry of Intelligence, her electronic devices were confiscated, and she was taken to an undisclosed location. Her family were not promptly informed of her whereabouts, and the legal basis for her detention has not been transparently communicated.
The Coalition is equally concerned by the continuing detention of Reza Khandan, Ms Sotoudeh’s husband and himself a human rights defender. Mr Khandan has been detained since 13 December 2024 and is currently held in Evin Prison in connection with his peaceful advocacy, including opposition to compulsory veiling rules. His detention, together with the renewed targeting of Ms Sotoudeh, demonstrates a broader pattern of pressure directed not only at a lawyer because of her professional and human rights work, but also at her family because of their peaceful civic engagement.
Read the call to action addressed to international organisms.
