Taraneh and Romina Rahimi, January protesters, named Sakharov Prize finalists

Taraneh and Romina Rahimi, two imprisoned sisters from Isfahan who were arrested in connection with the January 2026 uprising, made the shortlist of three finalists for the European Parliament's 2026 Sakharov Prize on Monday, 19 October 2026. Taraneh Rahimi has been sentenced to death by a court of first instance.

The two sisters were nominated by the parliamentary group Patriots for Europe. The other two finalists are the International Criminal Court and its staff, and Tundu Lissu, the Tanzanian opposition leader. The winner will be announced on Thursday, 22 October.

The Rahimi sisters' case: a death sentence and 36 years in prison

According to HRANA, Taraneh and Romina Rahimi were arrested by IRGC intelligence about a week after the events of 8 January near Shohada Square in Isfahan. The court of first instance sentenced Taraneh to death and 11 years in prison on a charge of "moharebeh" (waging war against God), and Romina to 36 years in prison on a charge of "aiding moharebeh". Their lawyers have appealed these sentences to the Supreme Court.

The two sisters were first held in solitary confinement in the IRGC detention facility inside the Dolatabad prison complex in Isfahan, and for a time were denied phone calls and visits with their family; they are now in the general ward of Dolatabad prison. Both have said their confessions were extracted under pressure and torture. The main charge against Taraneh relates to the death of an IRGC member that night, and according to sources close to the case, Romina was not at the scene at all. Their family says the case lacks any reliable evidence and is built on forced confessions.

The Sakharov Prize and the voice of Iran's protesters

The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought has been awarded by the European Parliament every year since 1988 to defenders of human rights and fundamental freedoms. In 2023 it went to Jina Mahsa Amini and the Woman, Life, Freedom movement. The Rahimi sisters' nomination comes as the Islamic Republic has, in recent weeks, launched a wave of executions of protesters from the January uprising, including Alireza Raisi, a 21-year-old protester executed in Isfahan on 5 October, and Homayoun Shabankar, who was sentenced to death in Karaj.

Two imprisoned sisters from Isfahan, one of them facing a death sentence, are now on the verge of receiving Europe's most important human rights prize.