Manifester n'est pas un crime. Arrêtez d'exécuter des enfants.

In late December 2025 and early January 2026, Iran witnessed a massive wave of peaceful public demonstrations driven by economic hardship and the collapse of the national currency. People from every part of society took to the streets: high school students, university youth, workers, teachers, and parents. Instead of addressing their legitimate concerns, authorities responded with brutal force, sweeping internet blackouts, arbitrary arrests, and fabricated security charges. Activist reports confirm that over 50,000 citizens have been swept into detention facilities.

Behind these staggering numbers are human beings whose lives are hanging in the balance. A student who should be sitting in a high school classroom is trapped in a cell. A young adult preparing for college faces an impending death sentence. A worker who marched to demand living wages is accused of heavy state offenses, while families wait in agonizing silence, not knowing if their children are still alive.

Human rights investigations reveal a clear pattern of abuse: prolonged solitary confinement, denial of independent legal representation, forced confessions, and swift sham trials. At least 20 protesters from the January demonstrations have already been executed. We cannot wait to mourn more victims after the state takes their lives; we must intervene before the gallows are used again.

The presence of minors and teenagers among the condemned represents one of the most painful aspects of this crackdown. Children as young as 15 have been detained or killed since the first days of the protests. Children must never be treated as political prisoners, subjected to physical abuse, tried in secret, or sentenced to death. Verein Welle is taking action today so these young people are not reduced to forgotten numbers in historical reports.

Our work follows an established framework used by international human rights organizations to protect those in immediate danger:

Research & Case Verification We gather verified data on arrest dates, charges, detention facilities, and medical needs to build complete case profiles that counter official narratives.

Judicial Defense Advocacy We challenge the legality of forced confessions, demand access to independent legal counsel, and pressure judicial authorities to drop death penalty charges.

Human-Centered Media Outreach We share individual stories across public platforms in multiple languages, ensuring the global public sees the human faces behind state repression.

Diplomatic Engagement We work directly with foreign ministries, UN representatives, and international bodies to demand diplomatic action and pressure Iranian embassies worldwide.

Global Public Petitions We rally international civil society, legal networks, and academic communities around an urgent campaign calling for an immediate halt to all executions.

To understand the urgency of this crisis, we look at the specific young people whose lives are directly on the line:

• Parsa Ghasemi (17 years old): A high school student from Behaban detained during the January protests. Parsa was previously arrested in 2024. He now faces charges that put him at risk of the death penalty instead of finishing his education.
• Alireza Masnou (16 years old): Held in legal uncertainty at the Gorgan Juvenile Correction and Rehabilitation Center. Reports show he has been placed under heavy pressure to sign coerced confessions.
• Soroush Karami (18 years old): Arrested on January 8, 2026, Soroush was held in solitary confinement for over five months before his transfer to the security ward of Diesel-Abad Prison in Kermanshah. He has been charged with Moharebeh (enmity against God), a offense that carries a death sentence.
• Shervin Bagherian Jebelli (18 years old): Sentenced to death twice following his arrest in the January demonstrations, based on coerced statements extracted during the “Ali Khani Square” collective trial. Out of the 12 young people charged in this single case, five have already been executed: Erfan Esfandiari, Gol-Mohammad Mohammadi, Abolfazl Sepahi Badjani, Amir-Hossein Safari Hossein-Abadi, and Ghaem Hosseini.

Verein Welle outlines a clear set of urgent demands to protect these young lives:

• An immediate halt to all pending death sentences linked to public demonstrations.
• The unconditional release of all detained high school students and minors.
• An immediate end to forced confessions, physical torture, and arbitrary detentions.
• Unrestricted access to independent legal representation for all detainees.
• Open and fair judicial proceedings observed by international representatives.

This effort is not about abstract politics; it is about protecting basic human life. Every day of silence brings another young life closer to the gallows. We urge citizens, legal organizations, journalists, and human rights defenders around the world to stand with us: sign our petition, share these stories, and demand that your representatives act before it is too late.

“No protest justifies a death sentence, and no child should ever face execution.“