Mashhad, Iran — December 6, 2025 — A deeply concerning case has emerged with the death of Khosrow Alikordi, a 46-year-old Iranian human rights lawyer and former political prisoner. According to reports, Alikordi was found dead late Friday night inside his office in Mashhad.

 

 

Official statements initially described the cause of death as a “cardiac arrest.”

 

But colleagues, activists, and eyewitnesses — whose accounts have been shared by rights-monitoring organisations — dispute this version. They report that Alikordi’s body bore clear signs of severe physical trauma, including a fractured skull, with blood reportedly visible coming from his mouth and nose.

 

According to one human-rights activist, a “trusted contact” claimed the death resulted from “a blow to the head.”

 

Additional claims suggest that security forces quickly removed CCTV cameras from the office and blocked access to the site, hindering independent examination.

 

 

Who Was He — and Why His Death Raises Alarm

 

Alikordi was known for representing prisoners from the 2022 “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests, political detainees, and the families of victims of state violence — including the family of a teenager killed during those protests.

 

He had himself been repeatedly targeted by the authorities: previously arrested, sentenced for “propaganda against the state”, banned from legal practice, and subjected to internal exile.

 

According to colleagues, he had recently warned clients and fellow activists about new “case-building” efforts against him, signalling that his legal and political activism placed him under renewed threat.

 

 

 

The contradictory evidence and pattern of intimidation have prompted domestic and international outcry: many lawyers, activists, and social-media users have described the death as a “state killing.”

 

Prominent human-rights voices in Iran emphasize that Alikordi’s death should not be viewed in isolation, but as part of a broader pattern targeting lawyers, dissidents, and defenders of political prisoners — especially those who defend victims of recent protest movements.

 

Calls have been made for a transparent, independent and impartial investigation to determine the true circumstances of his death — including an autopsy by external experts and protections for his family and colleagues