An Iranian artist is feared to be at risk of execution after being forced to confess to orchestrating protests against the government, her family says. Venus Hosseini-Nejad, 28, was arrested on January 15 in Kerman and has been held at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Intelligence Detention Centre ever since, with her family denied access to her.
Hosseini-Nejad’s cousin, Negar Manshady, who lives in Perth, Australia, told ABC News that her family is deeply concerned about her mental health. Hosseini-Nejad has bipolar disorder and has been taking medication for 12 years and her family fears she is not receiving proper medical attention in detention.
On February 1, Iran’s state broadcaster, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), aired a “confession” from Hosseini-Nejad, along with those of two other young people, Peyvand Naeimi, 30, and Shayan Shakibayi, 29. The broadcast depicted the three as admitting to organizing the protests that swept Iran in late December and early January. Families of the detainees claim the confessions were coerced by interrogators and scripted by the state.
According to Hosseini-Nejad’s family, the “confession” was extracted under pressure from interrogator Ameneh Sadat Zabihpour. The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned Zabihpour in November 2022, citing her “long history of direct involvement in the broadcast of coerced confessions” of dissidents, activists, and religious minorities. Australia also sanctioned Zabihpour in September 2023.
The faces of Hosseini-Nejad, Naeimi, and Shakibayi were blurred during the broadcast. Their families say the individuals were falsely accused of being members of an online network called “Ma” (We), which state media described as “satanic” and under the influence of Israel, according to Norway-based Iran Human Rights. The families maintain that Hosseini-Nejad and Naeimi were never involved in such activities or the protests.
Rozhin Rasekhi, a cousin of Peyvand Naeimi living in Canada, said he was arrested by plain-clothes agents at his workplace on January 8. She described how agents forcibly took his phone and then him, despite his resistance. “Peyvand is innocent. He hasn’t done anything wrong,” she told ABC News.
Hosseini-Nejad reportedly told her parents she made the confession under duress, with a promise of release within three days – a promise that was not kept. Manshady said her cousin was arrested simply for being a member of the Baha’i faith, a religious minority that has faced persecution in Iran for decades.
Awa Momtazian, a spokeswoman for the Australian Baha’i Community, stated that Baha’is are “often among the first to be accused of false allegations, scapegoated and targeted through coordinated disinformation and hate campaigns.” She called for international support for the detainees and justice for the Iranian people.
Naeimi’s family reports he has been denied legal representation and that there has been no due process in his case. He briefly contacted his parents after three days in detention, during which he expressed exhaustion and a willingness to cooperate with authorities, even if it meant facing execution, according to his cousin Rasekhi. A subsequent video of his forced confession was then broadcast on state TV.
The exact charges against Naeimi remain unclear, but Iran Human Rights reports the allegations include links to “Zionist networks,” “Satanism,” and “planning violent acts.” Naeimi’s family vehemently denies these accusations, emphasizing his love for animals and his background as a dog trainer and competitive swimmer, a pursuit repeatedly thwarted by authorities due to his religious affiliation.
Hosseini-Nejad’s cousin, Tara Wiedemann, based in the United States, also rejected the claims made by Iranian authorities, stating that the accusations are not representative of her cousin’s character. Wiedemann expressed fear for Hosseini-Nejad’s life and initiated a petition seeking international pressure for her release.
According to Human Rights Activists News Agency, more than 7,000 people have been killed and nearly 54,000 arrested in the recent wave of protests in Iran. A group of Iranian doctors reported in late January that as many as 30,000 people may have been killed by the regime during two days of protests alone.