Telegram Channel’s Photo Leaks Spark Suicides, Honor Killing and Extortion in Iran

In the past week, two teenage girls in Iran’s Lorestan province died by suicide after their photographs were posted on a Telegram channel that paired the images with accusations about their sexual conduct. Earlier incidents involved a 16-year-old girl and a 20-year-old woman who also took their own lives following similar leaks. Sharq newspaper reported additional suicide attempts and at least one honor killing linked to the same channel. Victims’ families describe burial without customary rites, as in the case of “Esma,” who was interred at Khazar Cemetery with only a few relatives present.

The Jerusalem Post

Channel administrators demanded payment to remove the offending posts, prompting extortion attempts across Lorestan, Kermanshah and West Azerbaijan provinces. Reported collateral damage includes a woman losing her job, another being expelled from her home by her husband, and a third whose engagement was cancelled. Student groups at universities in Khorramabad and Borujerd were also targeted, according to IranWire.

The Jerusalem Post

Police have arrested three suspects and continue to search for a fourth individual believed to operate the channel. Authorities and the judiciary have publicly pledged to dismantle the network, yet activists note that no substantive measures have yet removed the Telegram account or addressed the numerous complaints filed.

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Gender-equality lawyer Samaneh Sawadi, based in the United Kingdom, characterizes the campaign as “a cybercrime and a violation of women’s privacy, but those who committed such an act knew in what context and culture they were doing it.” She warns that the abuse exploits a misogynistic atmosphere that treats women’s bodies and online presence as family property, driving some victims to suicide. Sawadi adds, “When society does not think that the presence of women is fundamentally sinful, it will not resort to such tactics to eliminate them. We can certainly report them, but then another channel will emerge.”

The Jerusalem Post

• “Activists warn misogyny-fueled abuse campaign Samaneh Sawadi, a lawyer and gender equality activist based in the United Kingdom, told DW Persian that “this is a cybercrime and a violation of women’s privacy, but those who committed such an act knew in what context and culture they were doing it.” — Samaneh Sawadi, lawyer and gender-equality activist (UK)

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• “We need to see in what context these channels are created – in a context where the family considers the daughter and niece as its own personal property and sees her body, face, and social presence as its own and turns her decision to have a profile into a tool and says, ‘I will not allow you to do this,’” — Samaneh Sawadi

The Jerusalem Post

• “ “When society does not think that the presence of women is fundamentally sinful, it will not resort to such tactics to eliminate them.” — Samaneh Sawadi

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• “Reports link Telegram channel to suicides and honor killing “From a criminological perspective, this case illustrates how the combination of cyber violence, social stigma, and cultural pressures related to the concept of ‘honor’ can inflict severe psychological harm on victims, especially teenagers.” — Dadbaan, legal advocacy network

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