Mahdi Mahmoudi, a 17-year-old teenager from Aligudarz, has been missing since October 2022 amid the nationwide protests, abducted by security forces, with no information about his status nearly two years later. This case is another example of systematic enforced disappearances in Iran.
Iran Human Rights Society, June 3, 2025 – Mahdi Mahmoudi, a youth from Aligudarz, was detained by security forces in October 2022 and has since vanished without a trace. During the 2022 nationwide protests, thousands across various Iranian cities took to the streets to protest against oppression, discrimination, and structural repression. Concurrently, the regime’s security apparatus employed all means of suppression, including widespread arrests, direct shootings, throwing individuals from heights, and enforced disappearances, to counter the protesters.
One particularly alarming case is the enforced disappearance of Mahdi Mahmoudi, a teenager born in 2005 from Aligudarz, Lorestan Province. According to reports received by the Iran Human Rights Organization, this young man disappeared in October 2022 during the suppression of protests in Aligudarz, and no information about his status has been released to date.
Unsuccessful 2.5-Year Search for Mahdi Mahmoudi
Mahdi Mahmoudi, a member of the 2000s generation, has been sought by his family since the early days of his disappearance. They have repeatedly approached judicial, security, and law enforcement authorities to demand clarity on their son’s status, but nearly two years later, these efforts have yielded no results. The relevant institutions have not only failed to provide answers but have, at times, threatened the family to refrain from publicizing the issue.
Systematic Enforced Disappearances During the 2022 Nationwide Protests
The phenomenon of enforced disappearances in Iran, particularly during periods of public protests, occurs systematically. The disappearance of individuals following detention by security forces—without disclosing their whereabouts, access to a lawyer, court proceedings, or contact with their families—is a clear example of this gross violation of human rights.
During the 2022 protests, numerous reports emerged of detainees whose families were left uninformed about their fate for months or whose bodies were later found in suspicious locations such as mountains, dams, or unfinished buildings. In many cases, the authorities attempted to cover up the cause of death with fabricated scenarios such as “suicide,” “fall from height,” or “traffic accident,” while evidence indicated these individuals were killed due to organized violence.
Enforced disappearance is a primary tool of repression that not only instills fear and terror in society but also places immense psychological pressure on families and causes social fragmentation. In Mahdi Mahmoudi’s case, the lack of information about his whereabouts, the absence of an official case file, and the authorities’ failure to respond to the family’s inquiries demonstrate a systematic violation of the right to life, liberty, and personal security within the ruling security and judicial structure.
Human Rights Violations Through Arbitrary Arrests and Enforced Disappearances
According to international human rights standards, particularly Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), every individual has the right to liberty and security of person and must not be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. Additionally, Article 10 of the ICCPR emphasizes humane treatment of detainees, and Article 14 guarantees the right to a fair trial. In cases like Mahdi Mahmoudi’s, all these principles have been blatantly violated:
Article 9 – Right to Liberty and Security of Person: Mahdi Mahmoudi was arbitrarily detained and disappeared without informing his family or presenting a legal warrant, violating the principle of freedom from arbitrary detention.
Article 10 – Humane Treatment of Detainees: If still alive, his lack of access to a lawyer, family, or communication with the outside world indicates inhumane and cruel detention conditions.
Article 14 – Right to a Fair Trial: The absence of any judicial process, case file, or fair trial demonstrates a complete violation of Mahdi Mahmoudi’s right to due process.
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