Category: Freedom of Expression

Court Trial Held for Baha’i Citizen Kiana Shoaei

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities, Women
Baha'i, baha'i arrests iran, baha'i in iran, Baha'i women, imprisoned baha'is, Kiana Shoaei, Religious Minorities, Religious persecution, Shiraz

The trial of Kiana Shoaei, a Baha’i resident of Shiraz, was held at the Revolutionary Court in Shiraz on May 15.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, the trial referred the case to the prosecutor’s office to rectify incomplete documents. Another hearing will be held after the deficiencies are fixed.

Kiana Shoaei was previously summoned to Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Shiraz on May 5. In this citation, she was asked to appear at the branch on the 15th regarding a lawsuit that had been lodged against her for “forming dissident groups with the intention to disrupt the security of the country, membership in dissident groups with the intention of disrupting security, and propaganda against the regime”.

Shoaei had been awaiting trial since 2019,  after being arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence in October and released on bail in November of that year.

According to unofficial sources, it is estimated that more than 300,000 Baha’is live in Iran, but the Iranian constitution recognizes only Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism. Because their faith is not considered legitimate by authorities, the rights of Baha’is in Iran have been systematically violated for years.

This deprivation of the freedom to practice their religion is a breach of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The United Nations covenant holds that every person has the right to freedom of religion, freedom of converting religion, as well as freedom of expression, individually or collectively; openly or secretly.

Farzin Rezaei Roshan Transferred to Aminabad Psychiatric Hospital

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Aminabad Psychiatric Hospital, Evin Prison, Farzin Rezaei Roshan, freedom of expression, Judge Mashallah Ahmadzadeh, Political Prisoner, Rajai Shahr Prison, Roshan

Exiled political prisoner Farzin Rezaei Roshan, who has been held in solitary confinement in Rajai Shahr Prison since May 10, was recently transferred to Aminabad Psychiatric Hospital.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Roshan was sent to Rajai Shahr Prison on the pretext of being transferred to a hospital, and then held in one of its solitary confinement cells until his move to Aminabad.

Roshan was arrested by IRGC intelligence agents in June 2017 and held in Ward 2A of Evin Prison until he was released on bail 8 days later. Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, presided over by Judge Mashallah Ahmadzadeh, sentenced Roshan to four years in prison on charges of “propaganda against the system and assembly and collusion against national security”.

Roshan was arrested and transferred to Evin Prison to endure his sentence in March, 2019. He had been imprisoned until his transfer to Aminabad Psychiatric Hospital, where he currently resides.

Security Forces Arrested at Least 26 Citizens in the Cities of Ahvaz and Mahshahr

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Cultural, Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
ahvaz, Citizens arrested, Citizens detained, Eid al-Fitr, freedom of expression, Mahshahr, November Protests, Ramadan, Religious persecution

At least 26 citizens were arrested in the cities of Ahvaz and Mahshahr and transferred to an unknown location between May 14 and May 16. Additionally, several citizens with histories of  arrest have been summoned for detainment by security services over the phone.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, the arrests were made after Eid al-Fitr ceremonies, at which attendants danced and chanted slogans in front of the homes of citizens who were either killed in the November 2019 national protests or executed in recent years.

So far, HRANA has verified the names of “Rasoul Zuhairi son of Karim; Shaker Silawi, Mohammad Silawi, Qais Sawari, Walid Sawari, Hamzeh Chaldawi 34 years old, married, and father of 4 children; Hossein Mazra’eh, Hassan Hezbawi son of Ramazan; Hadi Hezbawi son of Ramazan; Mohsen Hezbawi son of Ramazan; Jamil Hezbawi son of Lefteh; Badrieh Hamidawi, Amin Amir Hatami, 23 years-old; Faisal Hezbawi, son of Ramazan; Keramat Hezbawi, son of Ramazan; and Mojtaba Salihawi from Mahshahr”.

“In the Zoyeh alley in Ahvaz, several citizens gathered in front of the house of Ms. Badrieh Hamidawi, the mother of Ali Tamimi, one of the victims of the November 2019 national protest, and chanted slogans,” an informed source told HRANA. “Ms. Hamidawi was arrested because she greeted them.”

The whereabouts of these citizens and the charges against them are unknown as of this writing. It is worth noting, however, that every year during the months of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr, many Sunni Arab citizens in the Khuzestan province get detained under various pretexts.

 

Court Hearing Postponed Again for Amirhossein Moradi, Mohammad Rajabi, and Saeed Tamjidi

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Executions, Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
#Don't_execute, Amir Hossein Moradi, Execution, Hearing postponed, Mohammad Rajabi, November Protests, Political Prisoners, Saeed Tamjidi

On May 12th, the court hearing for political prisoners Amir Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi, detained since the national protests of November 2019, was postponed for a second time.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, the prosecutor’s representative, defendants, and lawyers were all present, but the hearing was unable to proceed in the absence of a second judge. The hearing has not yet been rescheduled.

Amir Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi were previously sentenced to death by the Tehran Revolutionary Court. They were also sentenced to a total of 38 years in prison and 222 lashes.

On Jun 24, 2020, the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)  announced that the death sentence of the three political prisoners had been upheld by the Supreme Court. On July 14, 2020, the spokesman of the Judiciary officially announced the confirmation of their  death sentence and said that the sentences had been sent to the prosecutor’s office for execution.

However, according to the lawyers, permission to enter the trial and study the case was given to them on July 15, 2020–weeks after HRANA news agency reported that the death sentence was confirmed in the Supreme Court.

Less than an hour after the official confirmation of the death sentences for Amir Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi, “#Don’t_execute” became the world’s top trend with hundreds of thousands of tweets. Human Rights Watch, US President Donald Trump, the Writers’ Association of Iran, and others all reacted to this news. The hashtag has now been used more than ten million times.

The following day, UN human rights experts issued a statement and condemned the death sentences. The statement expressed that Amir Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, and Mohammad Rajabi were tortured and forced to confess and that these forced confessions were later used against them in their trials. HRANA has previously conducted numerous conversations with informed sources and extensive research to determine what happened to the prisoners in the various processes of activity up to the conviction.

On July 19, 2020, the three defendants’ lawyers issued a joint statement announcing that the case had been referred to a different branch for retrial after the Supreme Court’s acceptance of Article 477.

In mid December of 2020, in the aftermath of the global outcry, the young activists’ request for a retrial was finally accepted by Branch 1 of the Supreme Court and their death sentences were overturned.

The case was then referred to Branch 23 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, but, due to a change of chief judge of the branch, the first hearing was postponed from March to May 12th.

Now, it has been postponed from May 12th to a date that has yet to be determined.

The Continued Detention of Baha’i Citizens Vahid Dana and Saeed Abedi in Shiraz 

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Alieh Foroutan, Behrooz Farzandi Ardakani, Detention center No. 100, Freedom of religion, Qasem Masoumi, Religious persecution, Saeed Abedi, Saeed Ittihad, Sedigheh Aghdasi, Shiraz, Siamak Honarvar, Soroush Abadi, Vahid Dana

After three weeks, Bahai citizens Saeed Abedi and Vahid Dana are still detained in Shiraz in the Intelligence Ministry’s detention center known as No. 100. Following mass arrests and home searches of Bahai citizens in Shiraz, Abedi and Dana were arrested by intelligence agents on April 28th.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Vahid Dana has an acute type of chronic hypertension, and was under supervision of a specialist doctor prior to the arrest due to symptoms of angina pectoris. According to a source close to his family, Dana’s heart problems started in 2014, during a previous detention. The continued detention of the two citizens during the COVID-19 outbreak, coupled with the failure of officials to provide any update on their condition, has raised concern among their families.

Abedi and Dana were arrested in their homes by intelligence agents and then transferred to the detention center. Officers searched their homes and confiscated some of their personal belongings, including cell phones, personal computers, books, and images related to the Baha’i faith.

With the beginning of the wave of pressure on Baha’i citizens, 7 additional Baha’i citizens from Shiraz, (Saeed Ittihad, Qasem Masoumi, Siamak Honarvar, Soroush Abadi, Sedigheh Aghdasi, Alieh Foroutan, and Behrooz Farzandi Ardakani) were also arrested by agents in March. Their houses were searched, and some personal belongings seized by security forces. They were gradually released on bail after about a month.

Vahid Dana and Saeed Abedi had been previously arrested and charged in August of 2018. Each were sentenced to one year in prison and one year in exile, in absentia and without their or their lawyers’ information, by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Shiraz. These sentences were then reduced to 6 months imprisonment each by Branch 17 of the FarsProvince Court of Appeals. Later that year, they were both pardoned on the anniversary of the Iranian Revolution.

According to unofficial sources, more than 300,000 Baha’is live in Iran, but the Iranian constitution recognizes only Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism. Because their faith is not considered legitimate by authorities, the rights of Baha’is in Iran have been systematically violated during recent  years. This deprivation of the freedom to practice their religion is a violation of Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The United Nations covenant holds that every person has the right to freedom of religion, freedom of converting religion, as well as freedom of expression, individually or collectively; openly or secretly.

It is unclear when Dana and Abedi will be released.

 

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UN Experts Express Concern Over the Health Condition of Mohammad Nourizad in Evin Prison

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Evin Prison, medical neglect, medical negligence, Mohammad Nourizad, Nourizad, Political Prisoner, United Nations

On Tuesday, May 4th, UN experts issued a statement expressing concern over the health condition of civil activist Mohammad Nourizad and calling for his immediate release from Evin Prison. Javid Rehman, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, Niels Melzer, Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and several other UN experts stated that Mr. Nourizad has been in critical condition for some time, and continued deprivation of treatment could prove fatal.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, UN experts have stated that Mr. Nourizad’s case is “emblematic of the situation many Iranian political activists face in detention” , citing the transfer of Mr. Nourizad to Loghman Hospital in Tehran, on April 14, 2021, after fainting. The statement reveals that once revived, Mr. Nourizad “found someone injecting him with an unknown substance, that he did not consent to or was informed of”. Nourizad was denied information about the substance or its purpose from officials, despite his explicit requests.

66-year-old Nourizad is an Iranian director, screenwriter, journalist, and activist. Nourizad became an outspoken critic of the Islamic Republic a decade ago, and has since been arrested and imprisoned several times for his civic work and visits to families of political prisoners.

In mid-August 2019, 14 activists, including Nourizad, signed a letter calling for the resignation of Ayatollah Khamenei. Several signatories were arrested, and others were pressured after the letter went public. Mr. Nourizad was arrested by security forces on August 11, 2019, along with several union and civil activists and sent to Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad (he was later transferred to Evin Prison, where he currently resides).

In the first part of his case, Mr. Nourizad was charged by Branch 4 of the Revolutionary Court of Mashhad, presided by Judge Mansouri, on charges such as “insulting the founder of the Islamic Republic, insulting sacred values, insulting the leadership, disturbing public opinion, cooperating with foreign media, and participating in illegal gatherings”, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, 3 years of exile to Izeh, and a 3-year ban from leaving the country. Branch 35 of the Appeals Court in Razavi Khorasan Province revised the verdict to 15 years in prison, 2 years of exile to Izeh, and a 2-year ban on leaving the country.

In August 2020, in the second part of his case, he was sentenced by Branch 2 of the Mashhad Criminal Court to 8 months imprisonment, 74 lashes, and exile to Tabas on the charge of “disturbing public order” for appearing in front of the building where Kamal Jafari Yazdi was appearing; and sentenced to another 74 lashes on a charge of “spreading lies”. This verdict was confirmed by the Court of Appeal of Khorasan Razavi Province.

In May of this year, Mr. Nourizad announced that he has been sentenced to another year in prison on a charge of defending the rights of Baha’i citizens living in Ivanki, prompting this public concern. Mohammad Nourizad suffers from myriad underlying conditions, including asthma, heart problems, and high blood pressure. The forensic medicine organization previously ordered his release for medical reasons. According to these UN experts, considering Nourizad’s critical health condition and overwhelming consensus from professionals,  he cannot stay in prison.

Akbar Gholizadeh sent  to Tehran Prison After Appeal Denied

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Activist imprisoned, Akbar Gholizadeh (Yashar Tabrizi), Gholizadeh, Greater Tehran Prison, Tehran

On May 12, 2021, civil activist Akbar Gholizadeh (Yashar Tabrizi) was arrested and transferred to the Greater Tehran Prison to serve out a 3 month and 1 day sentence

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Akbar Gholizadeh  was arrested on charges of “propaganda against the regime”.

The charge is said to be related to a news report he prepared about working children, the homeless, and grave dwellers (a particular form of homelessness in Iran).

Gholizadeh, son of Baitullah, has served time for his human rights work before. In March of 2018, he was arrested and then temporarily released 12 days later.  Gholizadeh was given this latest sentence by the Shahriar Revolutionary Court, which was then upheld by Branch 54 of the Tehran Court of Appeals.

Civil Activist Saba Kord Afshari on Hunger Strike in Qarchak Prison

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Women
civil activist, medical negligence, Saba Kord-Afshari, women's rights in iran, Women's Ward of Evin Prison

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, civil activist Saba Kord Afshari went on a hunger strike on Saturday, May 8th.

22-year-old Kord Afshari, currently imprisoned in Qarchak Prison in Varamin, went on said strike to protest the increasing pressure on her family and other political prisoners in the aftermath of her public criticism of the compulsory hijab.

Kord Afshari demands the release of her mother, Raheleh Ahmadi, who was sent to Evin Prison for giving information about her daughter’s [Saba’s] living conditions in Qarchak.

While in Evin Prison, Raheleh Ahmadi developed a ruptured disc which relegated her to a walker, likely due to chronic stress after her daughter’s imprisonment. Ahmadi was granted medical leave on bail on March 14th, but was denied by prison authorities the two-month recovery period recommended for her surgery.

On April 3, 2021, Saba Kord Afshari was granted a short-term leave on a bail and returned to prison on April 10. On that same day, Ahmadi was returned to Evin Prison.

Kord Afshari’s embroilment in the penal system has been ongoing . In February 2019,  the young activist was released from the women’s ward of Evin Prison from her previous conviction. In June 2019, she was again detained by security forces and was later transferred to prison after interrogations.

In August 2019, Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, presided over by Judge Iman Afshari, sentenced Saba to 15 years imprisonment on the charge of “spreading depravity by uncovering a hijab and walking without a hijab”; 1 year and 6 months in prison on the charge of “Propaganda against the regime;” and 7 years and 6 months in prison for “Gathering and colluding with the intention of committing a crime against the security of the country”– a total of 24 years in prison along with other social deprivations.

Due to the multiplicity of offenses and previous criminal record, each of the charged sentences were cumulative, of which 15 years in prison was enforceable.

With a correction of judicial misconduct that had caused two and half times to increase in the sentences, and with punishment reduction law, 7 years and 6 months imprisonment will be enforceable.

Saba Kord Afshari has suffered from gastrointestinal bleeding several times before. This, along with the hunger strike has raised concerns about her health among her family members.

Christian Convert Reza Zaeemi’s Prison Sentence Reduced to Nine Months by Appeal Court

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Christianity, Karaj, Karaj Revolutionary Court, Religious persecution, Reza Zaeemi

The sentence of Reza Zaeemi, a Christian convert, was reduced by the Alborz Court of Appeals to 9 months in prison and a two-year ban from leaving the country. 40-year-old Zaeemi was sentenced by the Karaj Revolutionary Court to one year and six months in prison and a two-year ban from leaving the country in early February.

According to the HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Article 18, Reza Zaeemi was sentenced by the Alborz province court of appeals to nine months in prison and a two-year ban from leaving the country, a significant reduction from his previous sentence.

In January 2021, Mr. Zaeemi was sentenced to one year and six months in prison and a two-year prohibition of leaving the country by Branch 4 of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj, presided by Judge Shabani. Mr. Zaeemi was charged with propaganda against the regime through propagation of evangelical Christianity.

Zaeemi was arrested in November 2020 by undercover forces near his residence  in Karaj. He was transferred to an IRGC intelligence detention center from an unknown location, four hours later, and denied access to a phone for the eight day duration of his detention, during which time his home was searched by security forces.

After ten days, Zaeemi was transferred from the IRGC Intelligence Detention Center to Ghezel Hesar Penitentiary by the order of the Judge of the Revolutionary Public Prosecutor’s Office in Karaj and was released on bail of 60 million Tomans after one week.

Reza Zaeemi is a Christian convert from Karaj.

 

Eight Citizens Summoned and Arrested in Hamedan Province for Supporting Erfan-e-Halgheh (Circle of Mysticism)

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
circle of mysticism, Citizens arrested, Erfan-e-Halgheh, Hamedan, Hamedan province

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Tasnim, the public relations officer of the IRGC in Hamadan announced the summoning and arrest of eight supporters of Erfan-e-Halgheh (Circle of Mysticism).

Declaring these citizens to be members of the Erfan-e-Halgheh, Ali Akbar Karimpour said “Eight members of this sect were arrested and summoned, and their cases have been sent to the province judicial for legal proceedings.”

The report does not mention the identity or whereabouts of these citizens.