Imprisoned Kurdish activist Warisha Moradi went on an indefinite hunger strike on 10 October on World Day against the Death Penalty to protest against the death penalty in Iran and her own prolonged detention.

Moradi, a member of the Free Women's Community of Eastern Kurdistan (KJAR), has been imprisoned in Evin Prison for over 14 months, accused of ‘rebellion’, a systematic and arbitrary charge against the Iranian state.

The Kurdish activist on death row was abducted by the ‘Revolutionary Guards’ in Sine (Sanandaj) on 1 August 2023 and imprisoned after two weeks of detention.

Eastern Kurdistan Human Rights Network published a report on Warisha Moradi’s health condition, stating that she refused doctors’ medical examination and serum recommendations. The report points out that Moradi’s resistance action has reached a point of health risk.

In a letter sent to Radio Time shortly after she started her hunger strike, Moradi stated that her action was not about personal demands, but about the search for freedom and justice.

“I have decided to start a hunger strike on World Day Against the Death Penalty. My aim is to draw attention to the persecution of freedom defenders. We stand against the death penalty and executions that take place every day under the mask of political Islam. Do not let wars overshadow social issues. My hunger strike is to give a voice to the international campaigns and work against executions.”

In a recent statement calling for solidarity with Warisha Moradi, KJAR said: “Our comrade Warisha Moradi is the voice of society. She is especially the voice of the working women who are subjected to the attacks of the Islamic regime of Iran every day, but also the voice of all women struggling for freedom. We, the Free Women's Community of Eastern Kurdistan, appeal to all activist women, resistance fighters, pro-freedom communities, national and international organisations and institutions: stand by our comrade and support her, be the voice of the people. Do not allow the Islamic regime of Iran to cover up its crimes outside the country in the name of war in order to end this cruel policy based on the death penalty.”