Twin sisters sentenced in Isfahan: one to death, the other to 25 years
The First Revolutionary Court of Isfahan has sentenced 20-year-old twins Taraneh and Romina Rahimi, arrested over the anti-government protests in January. Taraneh was sentenced to death and Romina to 25 years in prison. Their family says the two were tortured in custody.
RastinewsThe First Revolutionary Court of Isfahan has ruled in the case of twin sisters Taraneh and Romina Rahimi, tried over their alleged participation in the anti-government protests that broke out in Iran in January: Taraneh was sentenced to death and Romina to 25 years in prison. The family told Radio Farda, RFE/RL's Persian service, that human rights groups put Romina's total sentence at 36 years once other convictions are counted.
Detention and four months without news
The twins, then 19 and still in high school, were detained in February over their alleged participation in the demonstrations held in Isfahan on 8 and 9 January. The family said masked officers took the girls from their home and blindfolded them, and that there was no news of them for four months.
Their mother, Marzieh Nourmohammadi, was able to visit her daughters at Dowlatabad Prison in May but could barely recognise them because of the swelling and bruises on their faces. Masud Nourmohammadi, a cousin living in the United States, said the twins had wounds on their elbows, knuckles and feet, and that their hair had been torn out as they were dragged between cells.
Family says no evidence was presented
The family and their lawyers argued that no evidence was presented showing the twins had taken part in violence. According to the Guardian, Taraneh said she was forced to confess under the threat that Romina would be raped in front of her. The defendants faced numerous charges, including "waging war against God" (moharebeh).
The twins are two of 16 defendants tried in connection with the Isfahan protests. In that case 10 people, including Taraneh, were sentenced to death and the others to long prison terms.
In a report published in July, Amnesty International said Iran's Supreme Court had upheld at least 13 death sentences linked to the protests. The Guardian reported that Iran executed more than 500 people in 2026, including those convicted over the protests.
The death sentences are not final and the appeals process is continuing, but human rights groups say Iran has been carrying out protest-related executions quickly.