Iran is intensifying its crackdown on women, minorities, and activists using drones, facial recognition, and tracking apps to monitor and suppress dissent, a new UN report reveals.
Khalid Mehdiyev said one of the defendants in the Russian mob group, Rafat Amirov confessed to him that Iran's government was behind the plot to murder the Iranian-American journalist.
Jacob Gutwillig, a federal prosecutor said in court this week: "The defendants were hired guns for the government of Iran."
Alinejad has been of the strongest and most vocal critics of Tehran's human rights abuses and persecution of women and minorities.
Since she fled Iran in 2009, she has had a target on her back.
“I was trying to get the easy way to kill her," the bearded Mehdiyev confessed in the Manhattan courtroom.
Prosecutors have said Iran’s government offered to pay Amirov, 45, and Omarov, 40, about $500,000.
Amirov and Omarov, both fellow natives of Mehdiyev’s Azerbaijan, are on trial for the murder-for-hire and attempted murder in aid of racketeering. The duo both pleaded not guilty.
Mehdiyev, who said he was paid $30,000 for the failed assassination attempt, is cooperating with the federal government after pleading guilty in an effort to lessen his potential sentence.
Watching and Waiting
Mehdiyev got dangerously close to Alinejad.
He parked outside of Alinejad's Brooklyn home for two days, watching her every move, and even slept in his car, ordering doordash meals to his vehicle.
The self-proclaimed Russian mobster watched and waited for his target.
The would-be assassin told the court he tried to open Alinejad's door, took videos and photos of himself touching her flowers in her front yard to prove to his mobster associates he was getting close to his mission, and asked his mob boss for a bike to conduct more surveillance.
In bone chilling testimony, Mehdiyev said even tried to hire a woman to lure Alinejad outside her home. He said he told the woman that his target owed him money and once she was in plain sight from the door opening, he would take care of the rest and pay her his share.
“I was there to try to kill the journalist,” said Mehdiyev.
He said in court Thursday that he saw Alinejad outside her Brooklyn home in at least on occasion. The shocking revelation made even more significant since Alinejad was already under FBI protection at the time.
But his assassination plans failed with some errors.
Once Alinejad spotted the stranger lurking around her home, peering into her window and wandering around her, she reported him to the FBI.
Mehdiyev ran a stop sign as authorities trailed him, leading to his arrest and the discovery of a loaded Ak-47, with one in the chamber and a ski mask.
The ski mask, he calmly said in court was "to cover my face when I was going to kill the journalist."
A past of kidnappings and murder-for-hire plots
Mehdiyev faced a grueling cross-examination that focused on his extensive criminal past.
Elena Fast, Omarov’s defense attorney, asked if he was ever caught for committing crimes in other parts of the world. He allegedly committed crimes in 7 countries around the world, but has only been convicted in the U.S.
Mehdiyev told the court he once tried to orchestrate a kidnapping in Ukraine as he was also managing a pizza shop called Peppino’s.
His resume included alleged kidnappings, extortion and murder-for-hire plots.
Green Card for an Informant (S Nonimmigrant)
Mehdiyev was born in Azerbaijan and left for the United States in 2017 after fear of rival gangs emerged in his home country.
He said he was offered by one of his mob bosses, known as a Vor in Russian, to run the gang division in the U.S. Mehdiyev said his goal was to one day became a Vor himself, and move up the ranks from his position.
He entered the U.S. on Nov 4, 2017 and later applied for political asylum, claiming that he would be tortured by Azerbaijani authorities. Mehdiyev admitted it was a lie as Fast, Omarov’s defense attorney said he was wanted in Azerbaijan for crime.
As a witness who has agreed to cooperate with the US government Mehdiyev's entire immediate family including his father, mother and brother are living in the United States with a S greencard, provided to informants.
Meantime, Alinejad hasn't seen her family in more than 15 years. Even Alinejad's brother was imprisoned in Iran in an attempt to put pressure on her to cease her activism.
As a witness, Alinejad cannot discuss the case, but posted to X on Wednesday how profoundly grateful she was to US law enforcement for saving her life.
“In a federal court, he admitted he was sent by the Islamic Republic to kill me for the ‘crime’ of speaking out,” Alinejad wrote on X.
The UN's Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran revealed that Tehran has significantly expanded its efforts to control and restrict the rights of women and girls.
The report highlights how the government is leveraging technology to enforce strict hijab laws and criminalize activism, portraying these efforts as part of a broader strategy to stifle human rights advocacy.
“These repressive measures reflect the State’s ongoing persecutory conduct aimed at suppressing women and girls’ human rights and their right to equality,” the report published on Friday said.
Despite pre-election promises by President Masoud Pezeshkian to ease the enforcement of strict hijab laws, the government has increased its policing since last year. The Noor Plan has intensified surveillance and criminal prosecution of women who defy mandatory hijab rules, according to the report.
In April 2024, Iranian authorities deployed aerial drones in Tehran and southern Iran to monitor women's hijab compliance in public spaces. Additionally, facial recognition software was installed at the entrance of Amirkabir University in Tehran to track female students' adherence to hijab regulations.
A key element of the crackdown is the Nazer mobile application. Vetted individuals and police officers can use this app to report women suspected of hijab non-compliance in private vehicles, taxis, ambulances, and public transport. The app allows users to log the location, date, and time of incidents and submit vehicle license plate information. This triggers an automated message warning the vehicle's owner about the alleged violation and threatening impoundment for repeated offenses.
Sara Hossain, Chair of the Fact-Finding Mission, said, “For two years, Iran has refused to adequately acknowledge the demands for equality and justice that fueled the protests in 2022. The criminalization, surveillance, and continued repression of protesters, families of victims, and survivors, in particular women and girls, is deeply worrying.”
Women human rights defenders and activists continue to face severe penalties, including fines, long prison sentences, and even the death penalty for peaceful activism. The report noted that at least 11 men and three women remain at risk of execution, amid concerns about torture, forced confessions, and unfair trials.
“The Government’s policies have denied victims in Iran the right to truth, justice, and reparations,” said Viviana Krsticevic, an expert member of the Mission. “Given the gravity of the violations in the country and the serious risk of recurring violence against those who express dissent or challenge the State and its policies, it is crucial for the Human Rights Council to continue supporting the victims in their search for redress and non-repetition.”
The report also noted how the Iranian government has expanded surveillance beyond its borders. Iranian activists and journalists abroad have been targeted through online harassment and threats.
Victims of torture and families of those killed in the protests have been intimidated to remain silent. Those who speak out, including human rights defenders, lawyers, and journalists, face threats and persecution. Many have been forced to flee the country.
Shaheen Sardar Ali, another expert member of the Mission, said, “It is imperative that comprehensive accountability measures also continue to be pursued outside the country.”
The Mission collected over 38,000 evidence items and interviewed 285 victims and witnesses. The report reaffirmed earlier findings of gross human rights violations and crimes against humanity, including rape, torture, and deaths falsely labeled as suicides.
Security forces showed "little or no distinction" between adult and child protesters, subjecting children to the same brutal treatment, including torture and unfair trials.
Ethnic and religious minorities, including Kurds, Baluchis, and LGBTQ+ individuals, were particularly targeted during the protests. The Mission also investigated the roles of Iran’s key state entities, including the Revolutionary Guard, police, morality police, and judiciary, finding these bodies responsible for widespread human rights violations.
The Mission compiled a confidential list of alleged perpetrators, which it will submit to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
This report follows another released on Thursday by UN Special Rapporteur Mai Sato, which condemned Iran for executing over 900 people in 2024, the highest number since 2015. Sato said, "Iran remains the highest per capita user of the death penalty globally."
Sato also criticized Iran’s new hijab law, which imposes harsh penalties, including up to 15 years in prison for women deemed non-compliant. "This law marks an unprecedented expansion of state control over women’s bodies and personal choices," she said.
The Fact-Finding Mission will present its full report to the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday, March 18. The Mission urged the Council to appoint a new independent body to continue investigating human rights violations in Iran.
