Three activists from the eastern Kurdish city of Şino have been released from prison on bail. According to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN), which is based in Paris the activists released are Shouresh Barham, Aziz Qadertaj and Salim Sharifi. The three men were arrested by Iranian regime forces between 29 January and 1 February and were held in Şino Central Prison until last Thursday.

There has been a wave of repression targeting Kurdish civil society in Rojhilat (western Iran) since 9 January, which led to almost 150 arrests.

According to information from the KHRN, only 32 people have been released so far - but only against the payment of bail. In 49 cases, the organization was able to determine the identities of activists who are still being held in prisons and detention centres run by the IRGC in the cities of Ûrmiye, Sine and Merîwan. Another ten people are still detained in Şino. They are also expected to be released in the next few days, as they were also given bail, according to the KHRN.

However, it is uncertain when the trial against these activists will begin. The exact charges brought against the activists by the Iranian security and judicial authorities are still unclear. Official declarations are not available, and the state media do not report or only vaguely on them. However, some freed people told human rights organizations that they were accused of "collaborating with a Kurdish opposition party" during interrogation.