Category: News

Pedram Abhar’s House Searched While He Remains Detained in Unknown Detention Center

Posted on by A MN
News, Religious Minorities
Article 18, Baha'i, Baha'i citizen arrested, Baha'i citizens, Bushehr, Pedram Abhar, Religious persecution, Shiraz, Skylar Thompson, Tehran, United Nations

On Tuesday, November 23, security forces raided and searched Baha’i citizen Pedram Abhar’s house in Tehran. On November 21, security forces arrested Pedram Abhar at his father’s home in Shiraz.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, at the time of arrest, they also searched the house and confiscated several family belongings such as identity cards, passports, cell phones, pictures and books related to the Baha’i faith. While Baha’i citizen, Pedram Abahar is still in detention in an unidentified detention center, his house in Tehran was searched by security forces again on Tuesday.

“On Sunday morning, November 21, at 10 am., Mr. Abhar departed from Shiraz to Bushehr,” an informed source told HRANA. “While he was at a rest stop on the road, he was surrounded by three cars. They arrested and transferred him back to his parents’ home in Shiraz. About 13 security agents searched the house. Yesterday, his parents went to the courthouse to find out about their son. However, they did not get an answer. Finally, this morning, Mr. Abhar was allowed to make a short call to his parent.”

Regarding this report, HRA Senior Advocacy Coordinator Skylar Thompson stated that HRA strongly condemned these discriminatory acts against religious minorities in Iran. She asked that the regime take action to ensure Iranian people, and Bahai’s citizens in particular, are entitled to the freedom of religion and can perform their religious acts freely.

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.

The reason for Abhar’s arrest, the charges against him, the security institution responsible for the arrest, and the detainee’s whereabouts are all unknown as of this writing.

Juvenile Offender Arman Abdolali Executed in Rajai Shahr Prison

Posted on by A MN
Children, Executions, News
Amnesty International, Arman Abdolali, Citizen executions, Death row, executions per capita, Ghazaleh Shakur, Karaj, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai-Shahr, Secret executions

Earlier this Wednesday, November 24, juvenile offender Arman Abdolali was executed in Rajai Shahr Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Abdolali was relocated to a solitary confinement cell yesterday as a regular procedure before carrying out the execution, and then executed in the morning.

Judiciary Media Center announced that on Wednesday morning, Arman Abdolali, who was previously convicted of murdering his girlfriend at the age of 17, was executed in Rajai Shahr Prison.

Last night, in response to his relocation to a solitary confinement cell, Amnesty International asked Iranian authorities to halt the imminent execution. Amnesty International had also previously urged that the sentence be stopped and pointed out, “The use of the death penalty against people who were under 18 at the time the crime was committed is prohibited under international law and constitutes an abhorrent assault on child rights.”

In 2013, while he was underage, Abdolali was indicted on the charge of murdering his girlfriend, Ghazaleh Shakur. During interrogation, he confessed to killing her but later on, he denied the charges, claimed that the confession has been extracted under torture and pleaded his innocence. The victim’s body was never found.

After the first confirmation of the sentence, Abdolali’s lawyer claimed him as innocent and asked for a retrial, which was granted by the Supreme Court of Iran. In the second retrial, the death sentence was upheld after six months by the Supreme Court of Iran and thereafter by an appellate court.

Couple Executed in Yasuj Central Prison

Posted on by A MN
Executions, News
Citizen executions, Death Penalty, Death row, Death sentence, Seyed Ali Malek-Hosseini, Siavash Ardeshiri, Tehran, Yasuj, Yasuj Central Prison, Yasuj Prison, Yasuj Tehran Prison

On Tuesday, November 23, a couple was executed in Yasuj Central Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Rokna, the man and woman had previously been sentenced to death after being charged with the murder of two people. HRANA has identified the executed man as Siavash Ardeshiri. The identity of the executed woman is still unknown as of this writing.

Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Yasuj Seyed Ali Malek-Hosseini commented on the verdict.

“On December 18, 2018, a man and his wife are arrested on the charge of murdering two people and subsequently were sentenced to death,” Malek-Hosseini stated. “This verdict was confirmed by the Supreme Court. The convicted man claimed that his motivation for these homicides was to save his marriage relationship.”

The most recent report of the Statistics and Publication Center of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) states that between October 8 of 2020 and October 9 of 2021, at least 266 citizens, three of whom were juvenile offenders, were executed and 90 citizens were sentenced to death.

As the report points out, Iran’s judicial authorities do not publicly announce over 82% of executions. These unreported executions are known as “secret executions” by human rights organizations.

 

 

Narges Mohammadi Still in Solitary Confinement One Week After Arrest

Posted on by A MN
News, Prisoners, Women
Ebrahim Ketabdar, Evin, Evin Prison, Ghods, Karaj, Moghaddas, Mohammadi, Narges Mohammadi, Taghi Rahmani, Tehran, travel ban, ward 209, zanjan, Zanjan Prison

Civil activist and spokesperson of the Defenders of Human Rights Center Narges Mohammadi is still in detention in Ward 209 of Evin Prison a week after her arrest.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Mohammadi was arrested on November 16, during a ceremony honoring Ebrahim Ketabdar who was killed by security forces in Karaj during the November 2019 protests.

According to her husband, Taghi Rahmani, yesterday she was sent to Moghaddas Court to be notified of the charges against her, and then sent back to  solitary confinement.

This year, Branch 1177 of the Criminal Court in the Ghods Judicial Complex in Tehran sentenced Narges Mohammadi to 30 months in prison and 80 lashes, as well as fines. She had been charged with “propaganda against the regime through the issuance of a statement against the death penalty”, “sit-down strike at prison office”, “property destruction by breaking glass” and “libel and assault”.

According to a report published by HRANA, in an open statement, Narges Mohammadi stated of these charges that she will not, “under any circumstances”, attend any court hearing, and will refuse to accept any verdict from the judiciary courts.

From May 5, 2015, until October of last year, Narges Mohammadi was imprisoned.

In December 2019, Mohammadi and seven other political prisoners in the women’s ward of Evin Prison announced in a letter that they would go on a sit-down strike in support of bereaved families who lost loved ones in November 2019 national protests. Evin Prison officials threatened to deport her and others who participated in the strike to prisons known for their harsher conditions. Subsequently, she was punitively transferred from Evin Prison to Zanjan Prison in December 2019.

Based on Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code and the charges against her, the severest punishment of 10 years was enforceable, but after five years and six months in prison, Narges Mohammadi was finally released from Zanjan Prison. Mohammadi has since been denied a passport and barred from leaving the country to visit her husband and children even though her previous conviction did not mention a supplementary ban on international travel.

 

Yosuf Pirjani and Reza Moghaddasi Sentenced to Three Months Each in Prison

Posted on by A MN
News, Prisoners
Judge Erfani, Khoy, Khoy County, Khuzestan, Khuzestan protests, Revolutionary Court of Khoy, Reza Moghaddasi, Tabriz, Yosuf Pirjani

Recently, the Revolutionary Court of Khoy sentenced Yosuf Pirjani and Reza Moghaddasi, both residents of Khoy County, to three months imprisonment each.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Pirjani and Moghaddasi were arrested by security forces on July 24 of this year, and then released on bail on August 6.

On July 24, 2021, in Tabriz hundreds of people demonstrated in support of the Khuzestan Protests against water shortages and mismanagement. During these protests, dozens were arrested.

On November 23, 2021, Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Khoy, headed by Judge Erfani, issued the verdict of three months’ imprisonment for Pirjani and Moghaddasi on charges of “propaganda against the regime”.

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Rahim Afravi Denied Leave after 22 Years Imprisonment

Posted on by A MN
News, Prisoners
ahvaz, Branch 12, Coronavirus, COVID, covid-19, Jiroft, Karun, moharebeh, Rahim Afravi, Revolutionary Court of Ahvaz, Sheyban, Sheyban Prison

Political prisoner Rahim Afravi has not been allowed a single day of leave in his 22 years of imprisonment in Sheyban Prison in Ahvaz.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, he has faced serious medical neglect in this time, and suffers from heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and pulmonary problems. Afravi recently contracted COVID-19, but was not dispatched to any medical center outside prison upon receiving a positive test.

53-year-old Rahim Afravi is married and the father of two children. In June 1999, security forces arrested Afravi when he was returning home from his workplace in the outskirts of Ahvaz City. Initially, the Revolutionary Court sentenced him to death on a charge of “enmity against God” (Moharebeh) and “acting against national security”. On appeal, the verdict was reduced to 25 years imprisonment and exile to Jiroft Prison.

According to an informed source, while he was in exile jail in Jiroft, his mother passed away. Family visitations were few and far between because of the great distance between the jail and the residence place of his family. After 13 years imprisonment in exile, he was relocated to Karun and then to Sheyban prison in Ahvaz City.

In August of this year, his request for release on parole and leave on furlough was dismissed by Branch 12 of the Revolutionary Court of Ahvaz.

Retired Educator and Union activist Latif Roozikhah Sentenced to Seven Months Imprisonment

Posted on by A MN
Cultural, Labor and Guilds, News
"Propoganda against the regime", activist, Activist arrested, Activist imprisoned, Jolfa City, Latif Roozikhah, Roozikhah

The Revolutionary Court of Jolfa City recently sentenced retired educator and union activist Latif Roozikhah to seven months imprisonment.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Roozikhah was asked to appear at the court on November 10.

He was sentenced to seven months in prison on a charge of “propaganda against the regime.”

 

 

Azerbaijani Turk Activist Parviz Siabi Sentenced to 16 Years Imprisonment

Posted on by A MN
Ethnic Minorities, News
Ardabil, ardabil central prison, ardabil prison, Ardabil Revolutionary Court, Islamiic Penal Code, Khuzestan, Khuzestan protests, Parviz Siabi Gorjan, Tabriz

Recently, Azerbaijani Turk activist Parviz Siabi was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Siabi was arrested amid the protests of July of this year in Tabriz, which was held in support of the nationwide Khuzestan protests.

Branch 1 of Ardabil Revolutionary Court sentenced 75-year-old resident of Ardabil Parviz Siabi Gorjan to 16 years in prison. He received one-year imprisonment on a charge of “propaganda against the regime via interviews with anti-regime media and posts on social media”, 10 years on a charge of “forming unlawful groups as an attempt to disrupt national security”, and finally 5 years on a charge of “membership in unlawful anti-regime groups”. Grounded on Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, a severest punishment of 10 years is enforceable for him.

On Sunday, July 25, security forces arrested Siabi and detained him in a Ministry of Intelligence detention center in Ardabil. After 11 days, he was transferred to Ardabil Central Prison. On August 29, he was released on bail of 250 million tomans from Ardabil Prison.

Siabi had been arrested before for his civil activities. On September 29, 2020, security forces arrested him along with 7 other Azerbaijani Turk activists in an assembly in a park in Ardabil. On October 29 of that year, he was released on bail from Ardabil Central prison. In regards to this arrest, he was summoned to appear at Branch 10 of the Public and Revolutionary Court of Ardabil.

Family of US Citizen Missing in Iran Seeks Answers

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News
Afsar, Afsar Amin-Akbari, Akbari, Amin-Akbari, Amir-abdollahian, Ashraf Amin-Akbari, dual nationals, Hossein amir-Abdollahian, INTERPOL, US Citizen

Three years after her disappearance, the family of Iranian-American dual citizen Ashraf Amin-Akbari continues to seek answers.

Ashraf Amin-Akbari, 63, is an Iranian-American-Canadian citizen born in Iran. Amin-Akbari, who resided in Las Vegas, Nevada, boarded a flight to Tehran to visit her family in July of 2018, and has been missing since August 1, 2018. The trip was meant to be a 3-week visit to a family home in Tehran.

Despite the passage of more than 3 years and her family’s persistent communications with US, Canadian, and Iranian officials, her whereabouts remain unknown. Amin-Akbari is currently listed on INTERPOL’s yellow notice list, a global police alert for missing persons.

In an interview with HRANA, Afsar Amin-Akbari, Ashraf’s sister, expressed concern regarding the condition of her 63-year-old sister.

“My sister had gone to Iran for a three-week trip to visit family,” she said. “Two weeks into her trip, on August 1, 2018, she disappeared. She has not been heard from since. Is it possible for a person to be lost in a country for this period and not be heard from? I follow up with the Iranian police and Agahi Shapoor (a specialist police department) every week and they say they have no information. I am told, ‘is your sister the only one missing in Iran?’”

Ms. Akbari is also concerned about the Iranian government’s history of arresting dual nationals.

“We have searched all hospitals, morgues, and cemeteries,” she told HRANA. “My sister has no history of civic activity, the only way left we think she may be is in a security detention center or prison. My sister is sick, suffering from kidney failure, she even quit her job due to illness. She needs her own medicine, and I do not know if she has access to her medicine wherever she is.”

On Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, announced, “Iran’s Foreign Ministry is to launch a program under which it claims to guarantee that dual nationals traveling to the country will not face detention or any other legal problem.”

In light of the recent remarks, HRA Senior Advocacy Coordinator Skylar Thompson calls on Amir-Abdollahian to answer for the situation of Amini Akbari and other dual nationals that are seemingly being held as political bargaining chips.

Thompson added, “The claim of such a guarantee is remarkably insensitive to the families of disappeared and detained dual nationals inside of Iran, including Ms. Amin-Akbari.”

_________________________________

For further inquiries please contact Skylar Thompson, Senior Advocacy Coordinator Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) at [email protected]

One Worker Killed, Sixteen Workers Injured in Three Workplace Accidents

Posted on by A MN
Labor and Guilds, News
Atabak district, Crisis Management Organization of Qazvin Province, Isfahan, Lak village, Qazvin Province, Qeydar City, Qodratollah Mehdikhani, Tehran, Workers' conditions

On Saturday, November 20, in three separate workplace accidents, sixteen workers were injured and one worker was killed. In one of these accidents, the owner of a building was also killed.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Borna News Agency, in Qazvin Province at the construction place of a wheat silo, a crane fell on the silo, which lead to the death of one worker and the injury of 12.

Qodratollah Mehdikhani, the head of Crisis Management Organization of Qazvin Province commented on the tragedy.

“Around 1:15 am, in Lak Village a crane fell over an under-construction silo and a part of the walls collapsed. 12 workers were injured and one other was killed,” Mehdikhani said.  “The rescue mission lasted until 6 am. Five workers were sent to a hospital in Qeydar City and seven others to several hospitals in Qazvin City. Unfortunately, one worker was killed from severe injuries and five of twelve workers have critical injuries. The crane did not meet the required safety standards.”

In another workplace accident, three workers were injured from an explosion, which caused a fire, in an old building in the Atabak District in Tehran.

“At 21:22, the fire department 125 of Tehran was alerted about a fire incident in an old building, in which the first floor was used as a warehouse by a workshop for bags and textile and leather products, ” the spokesperson of Tehran Municipality Fire Department said. “The  second floor was used as a restroom for workers from Afghanistan.”

“The fire took over the entire building and two of three workers were surrounded by fire in their room and could not leave.” the spokesperson added. “The firefighters reached the room by extinguishing the fire and rescued two workers. All three injured workers were hospitalized. Part of the building walls collapsed due to heat and explosions.”

In another workplace accident in Isfahan, during construction work in a building, the roof fell on the owner and a worker. In this accident, the owner was killed and a worker was injured severely.

Iran ranks 102nd in workplace safety out of 189 countries.