Or Yogev, Women of Iran. Digital Illustration.
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Renewed protests in Iran have been met with a harsh crackdown, with human rights groups estimating that thousands have been killed, tens of thousands detained, and many others disappeared, forcing most public dissent underground.
At Saqi, we believe in the importance of preserving and sharing testimony from moments when truth is under pressure. When human dignity is threatened, literature and art serve not as slogans, but as lasting records of experience, memory and resistance.
The last time such voices from Iran reached the wider world in large numbers was in 2022, during the mass demonstrations that followed the killing of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini. Her death sparked widespread protests across Iran, led largely by women and associated with the call for Women, Life, Freedom.
Acts of resistance continue despite surveillance, intimidation and severe punishment. What remains is not only a political story, but a human one: of fear, defiance and the determination to be seen and heard.
We share the material below in the spirit of attention and record, and as part of our ongoing commitment to publishing voices from the region with care and seriousness.
The statement that follows was written by students at a university in Tehran and circulated during the nationwide protests in 2022, shortly before an internet blackout and a violent crackdown. To protect those involved, we cannot identify the university or the authors. We are sharing it here as a document of its moment – a reflection of fear, courage and collective responsibility, written in real time.
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We are living in a time when truth is no longer safe; it must either be spoken or buried under the weight of silence. In such times, neutrality is a myth, and silence is not caution – it is a betrayal of humanity. What is happening to the people is not a temporary crisis; it is a wound. And a wound, if left unspoken, festers. Violence, by any name, denies human dignity, and no power becomes legitimate by breaking people. If the university does not stand now, it has fallen from its position, and art loses its meaning if it turns away from suffering.
In this situation, our duty is not to watch silently; it is to stand for the truth, to capture what they want erased, and to speak what they want silenced – even if the cost is rejection, pressure or life itself – because truth is never safe. But standing up is not an individual act; we are not just witnesses, we are together. Standing means that no wounded human is left alone, and solidarity means we do not let fear divide us. With this clear stance, the students condemn violence and violations of human dignity and declare: we stand with the people of Iran. This is not just a statement – it is a pledge.
We also declare that none of the students of these classes will participate in the exams.
We remain, together, in resistance and solidarity, with the people of Iran until freedom.
Respectfully,
The Students
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We are offering a free download of Woman Life Freedom, edited by Malu Halasa, until 31 January 2026.
Woman Life Freedom is a universal rallying call and a celebration of the women the regime has tried and failed to silence. Extolling the power of art, writing and body politics, it goes behind the scenes at forbidden fashion shows; records the sound of dissent in Iran where women are not allowed to sing in public; and walks the streets of Tehran with ‘The Smarties’ – Gen Z women who colour and show their hair in defiance of the authorities, despite the potentially devastating consequences.
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Image captions [L-R]: Jina Mahsa Amini, born 21 September 1999. Photo Khiaban Tribune | Protestor drivers her argument home', photo by Hengameh Golestan | Nika Shakarami, born 2 October 2005. Photo Khiaban Tribune | 'My Hair Is Not Your Battle Ground' by Roshi Rouzbehani | Photo by Mehri Rahimzadeh | 'The Smarties' Photo by Shiva Khademi | 'Blinding As a Weapon of Suppression in Iran: Special Report' by Mana Neyestani | 'Squad Goals' by Marzieh Saffarian | 'Irooni Women' by Marzieh Saffarian | Jalz, Untitled | 'Let Us Believe in the Beginning of the Cold Season (Portrait of Forough Farrokhzad) by Soheila Sokhanvari
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With solidarity,
Saqi Books
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