Mehdi Karimi, a Kurdish citizen from Malekshahi, Ilam Province, appeared in a video broadcast by state media following his arrest by security forces. According to reports, he has been denied access to legal counsel, contact with his family, and visitation rights, while his whereabouts remain unknown.

According to the Kurdish news outlet Kurdpa, security forces violently arrested Mehdi Karimi on June 18, 2026, without presenting a judicial warrant and transferred him to an undisclosed location. A source familiar with the case told the outlet that the individual whose face was blurred in the video aired by state media was Mehdi Karimi.

Two days after his arrest, the judiciary-affiliated Mizan News Agency and the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) aired a video containing Mehdi Karimi’s apparent forced confession as part of a report announcing the arrest of “three field leaders and 14 U.S.-Israeli mercenaries.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of Intelligence said that an individual identified only by the initials “M.K.” had been arrested in connection with the January 2026 nationwide protests.

The broadcasting of televised forced confessions by detainees who are denied access to lawyers and communication with their families has become an increasingly common practice in the aftermath of the January 2026 nationwide protests. Human rights organizations have repeatedly warned against the use of forced confessions, expedited judicial proceedings, and incommunicado detention. In numerous cases, such confessions have been aired before any trial has taken place, raising concerns about coercion, torture, and broader violations of detainees’ rights.

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