After more than five years in detention, two award-winning Sharif University students face fresh politically motivated charges, underscoring the regime’s ongoing judicial repression.
In yet another display of judicial repression, the Iranian regime has issued fresh prison sentences against Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi, two award-winning Sharif University students who have already spent over five years behind bars. The new rulings, announced by their lawyer, Mostafa Nili, reveal the regime’s continued use of fabricated charges to silence dissent and punish perceived political threats.
On Saturday, August 9, 2025, Nili wrote on the social media platform X that Branch 29 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court had sentenced both Younesi and Moradi to 15 months in prison for “propaganda against the regime.” In a separate case, the court sentenced Younesi to five additional years in Kerman Prison for the charge of “endorsing and strengthening Israel.”
As part of his sentence, Younesi has also been banned from accessing any form of social media or making telephone contact with individuals outside prison—except in “necessary” cases under the direct supervision of the prison warden—throughout the duration of his imprisonment.
This is not the first time the regime has accused Iranian citizens of “supporting Israel.” In the aftermath of the recent 12-day war and ceasefire between the Iranian regime and Israel, hundreds of Iranians have been targeted by security and judicial institutions.
Many face heavy prison terms or even the death penalty on similarly unsubstantiated charges. On August 9, the regime’s judiciary spokesperson claimed that 20 citizens arrested after the recent conflict were “agents of espionage and supporters of Mossad,” confirming that their cases are under investigation.
The new sentences come despite the fact that Younesi and Moradi have already endured over five years of imprisonment since their arrest in April 2020. At the time of their detention, both were only 19 years old.
Ali Younesi, born March 4, 2001, was a computer science student at Sharif University of Technology and winner of the gold medal in the 2018 International Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad in Beijing, China. As part of Iran’s national team, he contributed to securing five gold medals, earning first place in the competition.
Amirhossein Moradi, born February 20, 2001, was also a Sharif University student and holder of a silver medal in Iran’s National Astronomy Olympiad in 2017.
Following their arrests, then-judiciary spokesperson Gholamhossein Esmaili accused both students of having links to “anti-regime groups,” including the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK), and claimed that “explosive materials” had been discovered in their homes. These allegations were categorically denied by Younesi, Moradi, their families, and those close to them.
For nearly two years, the regime subjected them to prolonged interrogations and intense pressure to extract forced televised confessions. In May 2022, the Revolutionary Court sentenced Younesi and Moradi to 16 years in prison on alleged “national security” charges.
In March 2025, Iran’s Supreme Court ordered a retrial following appeals by their lawyers. After this retrial, the court reduced their enforceable prison term to six years and eight months.
The latest rulings, adding yet more years to their sentences, highlight the regime’s systematic use of the judiciary as a political weapon. Rather than addressing their wrongful imprisonment, the authorities have sought to extend their incarceration with fresh charges—part of a broader pattern of targeting educated youth, silencing dissent, and deterring any form of independent thought or activism within Iran’s academic community.
