Preface: From @BamdadBidar on X, July 20, 2025
The release of the new issue of the magazine was delayed, as we too were affected by the current conditions, under the shadow of war and insecurity. But we will continue this path, with pen, with voice, with resilience. In a situation where Iran's sky is darkened by the sound of fighter jets, missile explosions, and the shadow of Israeli attacks, the regime has taken full advantage of this atmosphere to intensify internal repression. History has shown that foreign wars have always been an excuse for internal elimination, censorship, and killing, and this rule holds true today as well.
The Islamic Republic's repression apparatus, emboldened by this crisis atmosphere, has swiftly moved to silence dissenting voices, settle political scores, and carry out execution sentences. On the other hand, foreign heads of state are also engaged in killing and creating a bloody balance of power. But our war with this regime began long before the regional crises. In news that was quickly suppressed, in photos that were never published, in a silence accompanied by fear, civilians lost their lives. People who were neither commanders nor decision-makers just lived there, and are no longer with us.
The truth is that whether by missile or by noose, death is brought to people's homes. The killing of a human being is not just the end of one life. Its consequences linger for years on the body and soul of families, loved ones, and society. They justify destruction in the name of law. They portray death as "necessary" and "purposeful." But our war is with these very lies; with those who devalue life and inflict death to cling to power. Opposing execution is not possible with mere individual and fleeting reactions. To stop this killing machine, we need a collective will. This collective cannot take shape without a shared value. We must agree on a fundamental principle, a principle that transcends borders and beliefs, uniting us all: the value of human life.
If life, unconditionally, has value, if human lives matter, no justification—neither law, nor war, nor revenge—can make taking it acceptable. If life has value, opposing execution is the value of all humanity. Until the permanent abolition of the death penalty, for everyone and forever, we will write and fight. We invite you to join us on this path. #NoToExecution
Back Cover of Bamdad Bidar/Awake at Dawn #2: Another Step Toward the Light
Our promise was to return, with a louder voice. Now, in this second issue, we repeat that promise. We have risen from the same darkness as the first issue, but this time with our eyes wider open to the light. We are still writing about the broken, but with a more determined will to build bridges. This is not the end of the road; it is a continuation along the path we started with you. Every word in this issue is an echo of a voice heard in the previous issue, every story a testament to names and memories not being forgotten. We have not come to have the last word. We are here to keep storytelling alive. We are here to write, to read, and to remember. This issue, like the previous one, comes alive in your hands, by your reading, by your retelling, and by your criticism. "Bamdad Bidar" continues to be created in the minds and hearts of its readers. We are grateful to all the writers, researchers, and designers who helped us in creating the second issue.
Brutal Transfer of Prisoners and Cruel Death Sentences
On Friday August 8, over 600 prisoners were violently transferred back into the rubble strewn Evin prison, without any notification to their families. Male prisoners had been taken to, and held in the overcrowded Greater Tehran Prison since the Israeli bombing of Evin in June. In this transfer, several were beaten with serious injuries for refusing to wear shackles and handcuffs.
Six political prisoners were given death sentences and forcibly taken to Ghezel Hesar prison, known for numerous frequent executions, but also known as the site of prisoners initiating and leading the “No to Execution Tuesdays” in early 2024, now into its 80th week in nearly 50 prisons across Iran. As of this writing (8/9/2025), the death sentences of the six are still in effect.
In the face of ever more threats upon brutal beatings, many political prisoners continue to bravely stand up and refuse to comply with Iran’s fascist theocrats.
Among them is Ahmadreza Haeri, who immediately sent out a detailed report after the Israeli bombing and violent transfer of prisoners from Evin. We posted an initial description of this crime by Iran’s rulers on July 28 on our website.
Below are excerpts from an August 9 post on his situation, taken from his social media, reposted by @Burnthecage:
A new summons on charges of propaganda against the regime was served on Ahmadreza Haeri…immediately after he was returned to the ward, still suffering from physical and mental injuries....In this notice, Mr. Haeri is told to appear in that branch to defend himself on the charge of “propaganda against the regime!”
The turning point for the pressure and repression this time, was his reports of the brutal beating of imprisoned human rights activists by prison guards with their faces covered, which took place on “Bloody Saturday in Ghezel Hesar.” The full and detailed account has not yet been published, but according to what Mr. Haeri said in a phone call: “The extent and depth of the crime and the violation of various aspects of human rights in Bloody Saturday in Ghezel Hesar has been unprecedented in the history of prisons and political prisoners of the Islamic Republic in the past 27 years.”
The vicious attack on the political prisoners, and execution surge, is continuing unabated by the Islamic fascist regime. There are many examples among the political prisoners such as that of Mr. Haeri, acting in the face of great personal risks for the defense of the dignity and humanity of themselves and others. This spirit of determined, heroic self sacrifice needs to spread all over our world today – along with a search of the way out – of the physical prisons like Evin and Ghezel Hezar, AND the larger prison of oppression and exploitative societies in various countries.
Merchants Strike against Executions in Face of Threats and Real Risks
In the mountain town of Semirom in central Isfahan province, videos show streets of closed shops as merchants answered a call to go on strike on August 7 against the possible imminent execution of two brothers who protested the killing of a third brother and other protesters by police during the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising in 2022.
This widespread strike was especially courageous because the day before, the Semirom Prosecutor’s Office had issued a threat on social media linking such actions to aiding “the enemy”, punishable by death (mechanical translation): “Any business support for this [strike] call will be subject to legal prosecution.… In the current conditions of society and the threats to the country by its enemies and the recent war against the country of Iran, any domestic action that deprives the people of their comfort, peace and security will be considered an example of siding with the enemy and will be dealt with decisively by the law.”
Text above video reads: Today, Thursday, August 7, 2025, merchants and shopkeepers in the city of Semirom in central Isfahan Province went on a nationwide strike by closing their businesses. This collective strike is a protest against the death sentences of Fazel and Mehran Bahramian, two political prisoner brothers who were arrested during the 2022 protests.
On July 30, as human rights group Hengaw reported, four men from Semirom initially detained during the 2022 “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement were re-arrested and transferred to Dastgerd Prison in Isfahan. The brothers Fazel and Mehran Bahramian had been sentenced to death, while Younes Bahramian and Dariush Saeedi each received 16 years in prison. In February 2024, following the issuance of these sentences, merchants and shopkeepers in Semirom went on strike, demanding the immediate cancellation of the death penalties against Fazel and Mehran Bahramian. The four protesters were then released on bail in February 2025. Their re-arrest has once again heightened fears that the executions of Fazel and Mehran Bahramian may be imminent.
A poem published on social media “On behalf of the youth and shopkeepers of Semirom” declared, in part:
Dear Fazel and Mehran...
In the silence of dark cells, if our voice doesn't reach you,
Know that Semirom is awake, alive, standing behind you.
You're not alone...
Behind you stand people who have honor in their bones and blood,
People who were not afraid of threats,
They were not afraid to close the shops,
They were not afraid to sacrifice their livelihood for zeal and freedom…
And they said, "No to execution," which means yes to humanity.
It means that we are alive... And we shout!...
Over 1,300 Activists Demand an End to Iran’s Brutal Anti-Afghan Crackdown
As part of the widening and broadening spirit of defiance in Iranian society to a thoroughly bankrupt and outmoded system, it was reported by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) that a joint letter, dated August 5, 2025, was posted online by over 1,300 Iranian and Afghan Activists, Filmmakers, Journalists, and Citizens, calling on “the Islamic Republic to immediately end its inhumane treatment of Afghans in Iran”:
The wave of anti-Afghan sentiment in Iran, which in recent months has been expanding at an unprecedented rate, has now reached its peak under the Islamic Republic. The expulsion of migrants—previously justified with unsubstantiated claims such as “altering the demographic composition,” “raising unemployment and worsening Iran’s economic problems,” and “increasing crime”—has now, since the start of the 12-day war [between Iran and Israel], been framed with a new baseless accusation: labeling Afghans as “key elements of espionage and infiltration networks.” This is nothing but a pretext to take revenge for Israel’s criminal attack on the most voiceless and oppressed migrant minority. This accusation is not leveled against a few individuals or groups within this community of millions, but rather against all Afghans collectively.
The CHRI notes that "Deportations have surged at an unprecedented scale, with more than 1.5 million Afghans expelled so far from Iran in 2025. At least 70% of these individuals were forcibly removed. Alarmingly, children make up approximately 25% of those deported…These mass expulsions have created a worsening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, where over 1.9 million returnees this year alone have overwhelmed an already fragile economy and food system.”
Their letter concludes:
We, the undersigned, call on the Islamic Republic to immediately end its inhumane treatment of Afghans in Iran. We also urge all citizens not to remain silent in the face of this blatant injustice. We ask you to break this silence and indifference—which the authorities interpret as complicity and “national will”—through humane, persuasive, and supportive means. The injustice being inflicted today upon Afghans and other voiceless minorities destroys, above all, the very values we claim to stand for: humanity, justice, and freedom. Let us not be indifferent to the normalization of such oppression, and let us not add to the suffering of those who consider Iran their homeland.
The IEC continues to work to free all of Iran’s political prisoners, to stand with all those who “have risen from the darkness,“ with our eyes wide open in our common fight for the dawn of a new day for humanity. We walk hand in hand on this journey, with Bamdad Bidar and so many others. As true friends, we will not let go, in the face of storms across the vast oceans and skies.
We demand of the Islamic Republic of Iran: FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS NOW! We say to the U.S. government: NO THREATS OR WAR MOVES AGAINST IRAN, LIFT U.S. SANCTIONS!