Saeid Hassanzadeh Siahgourabi, an Iranian journalist and human rights activist, is at risk of being deported from Turkey. He is currently being held under administrative detention at the Arnavutköy Removal Center in İstanbul.
Siahgourabi was apprehended near his home on Feb 9 following a deportation order issued by the İstanbul Provincial Directorate of Migration Management on the same day. His lawyer, Salih Efe, said they have filed a legal challenge against the deportation and also submitted a request for international protection on his behalf.
“It is unlawful to proceed with deportation before the protection claim is reviewed,” Efe said.
Residence permit expired
According to Efe, Siahgourabi was arrested in Iran in 2009 for participating in anti-regime protests. He was subjected to mistreatment and threats during interrogation and spent nearly four months in Tehran’s Evin Prison before being released on bail. After a second legal case was filed against him, he fled the country.
In the first case, Siahgourabi was sentenced to one year and ten months in prison. The second case remains open, Efe said.
Siahgourabi has been living in Turkey since 2010 on a tourist residence permit. The İstanbul migration office decided to deport him on Feb 9, citing the expiration of his residence permit on Aug 17, 2025. His application to renew the permit, submitted on Sep 16, 2025, was denied. As a result, he has been considered an “unregistered” resident in recent months.
Pending visa application
Although his permit was no longer valid, Siahgourabi remained in Turkey while awaiting the outcome of a visa application to France. He had attended a visa interview at the French consulate in Nov 2025 and did not leave Turkey while the decision was pending.
Efe stated that his client’s intention was to leave Turkey through legal means once the French visa was granted.
He also said Siahgourabi had continued to face threats from Iranian intelligence while in Turkey due to his opposition to the regime. Last summer, photos of his residence in İstanbul were anonymously left at his door, he added.
Seeking international protection
The deportation order was issued on grounds that Siahgourabi posed a “threat to public order, public security, or public health,” according to the migration authority. Efe rejected that characterization.
“He has lived in Turkey since 2010 and has never engaged in any act or behavior that could disturb public order or security,” Efe said. “The assessment by law enforcement labeling him a public threat is neither legal, proportionate, nor fair.”
Efe warned that if deported, Siahgourabi would face a high risk of arrest at the airport, interrogation under torture, imprisonment, and possibly even the death penalty, due to his political stance.
He emphasized that Turkey has an obligation under international law not to return individuals to countries where they face such risks. Siahgourabi has officially requested international protection in Turkey, citing ongoing threats to his life in Iran.
Another Iranian journalist in detention
Efe also provided an update on another Iranian refugee journalist, Kaveh Taheri, who has been held at the Kocaeli Removal Center since Jan 26 after being detained in Sakarya. As previously reported by independent outlet bianet on Feb 4, Taheri’s case remains unchanged. The journalist continues to be held under threat of deportation, despite a series of national and international reports calling for his protection.
Iranian refugee journalist Kaveh Taheri faces deportation
(HA/VK)
