Mohammad Habibi

Age: 46
Activism/rights: Teacher trade unionist
Status: Released
Judicial status: - 
Violations: Arbitrary arrest and detention; denial of access to a lawyer; lack of a fair trial and due process; denial of medical care; dismissal from employment and deprivation of employment; denial of family visits; torture and ill-treatment

Mohammad Habibi, a teacher, spokesperson for the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations, and former spokesperson of the Tehran Teachers’ Trade Association, has carried out extensive activities to advance teachers’ demands and promote justice within the education system. He has repeatedly condemned the poisoning of school children and called for the perpetrators to be held accountable. In March 2018, security agents raided his school and arrested him in front of students and fellow teachers using pepper spray. He was released on bail 44 days later, but during a peaceful teachers’ protest on 10 May 2018, he was violently rearrested by security forces. Mohammad was held in solitary confinement for one week with a bruised body and injured ribs, without any medical care, and was subsequently transferred to the Greater Tehran Penitentiary where he was denied medical treatment for three months, during which his fractured rib healed without specialised care. In August 2018, Mohammad was sentenced to 10 years and six months’ imprisonment, 74 lashes, a two-year ban on participation in political and social parties, and a ban on leaving the country on charges of “assembly and collusion” and “propaganda against national security”. This sentence was upheld in late December 2018 by Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeal. He was repeatedly transferred between Evin Prison and the Greater Tehran Penitentiary and, despite underlying health conditions, was repeatedly denied medical care. Prison authorities also prevented him from meeting with his family as a form of punishment. Habibi was dismissed from his job by order of the Ministry of Education. After serving two and a half years of imprisonment, he was released from Greater Tehran Prison on 10 November 2020 under an early release directive. As his trade union activities continued, Mohammad was again arrested on 30 April 2022 and held in solitary confinement for more than 50 days. On 23 October 2022, Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court sentenced him to three years and seven months’ imprisonment on charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” and to one year’s imprisonment on charges of “propaganda against the system”.

Mohammad was released from prison on 8 February 2023 after being included in a general amnesty. However, on 5 April 2023, security forces violently arrested him during a raid on his workplace and transferred him to Evin Prison. After 47 days of detention in solitary confinement, he was released on bail on 22 May. In October 2023, the Administrative Violations Board of the Ministry of Education issued a dismissal order against Habibi. This decision was upheld by the Administrative Justice Court.
Participation in and organisation of trade union gatherings and membership in the Teachers’ Trade Association were among the charges against him.

In August 2024, the Shahriar Revolutionary Court sentenced Mohammad to six months and one day’s imprisonment on charges of “propaganda against the system” for protesting the poisoning of school children. Following the confirmation of this sentence on appeal and the issuance of a summons, he was arrested on 10 November 2024 and transferred to Evin Prison.

Mohammad Habibi was released from Evin Prison in March 2025 upon completion of his sentence.