Tag: Evin

More than Two Decades Behind Bars, Prisoner Profiles – No. 8: Afshin Baymani

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News, Prisoners
20years, Afshin Baymani, Evin, Ghezel Hesar, Rajai-Shahr, TwoDecadesBehindBars, افشین بایمانی

HRANA – Numerous political and religious prisoners in Iran have spent more than two decades in detention. To ensure their stories are not lost amid the constant churn of daily news, HRANA publishes a series of reports dedicated to them. Each report reviews the prisoner’s case history, prison conditions, access to basic rights, and urgent needs.

This report examines the current situation of Afshin Baymani after over two decades in prison.

Information Sheet

• Name: Afshin Baymani

• Year of Arrest: 2000 (1379 in the Iranian calendar)

• Stated Charge: “Moharebeh [enmity against God] through collaboration with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK)”

• Initial Sentence: Death penalty

• Current Sentence: Life imprisonment (commuted with one degree of reduction)

• Places of Detention:
After his conviction, Baymani spent years in various wards of Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj. In August 2023, he was transferred from there to Ward 10 (Section 8) of Evin Prison, without respect for the principle of separation of crimes. In September of the same year, again without separation of crimes and with violence, he was transferred from Evin to the security ward (Unit 3) of Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj. In November 2023, he was granted medical furlough from Ghezel Hesar for treatment and care. However, after about one month—despite incomplete treatment—he was rearrested at his residence by police forces on the orders of the Head of Enforcement of Verdicts of Karaj Revolutionary Court and transferred to Asadabad Prison in Mobarakeh, Isfahan, where he was held in the health ward. In January 2024, he was once again transferred from Asadabad to Ghezel Hesar Prison, where he remains to this day.

• Leave / Access: No furlough has been reported in recent years; access to family and lawyer has been limited.

• Current Status: Still serving a life sentence despite legal changes that could allow for review or reduction.

Case Background and Judicial Process

Afshin Baymani was arrested on September 5, 2000, on charges of “Moharebeh through collaboration with the PMOI” and allegedly assisting his brother, Mehdi Baymani, a member of the PMOI, to escape. He was sentenced to death by the Tehran Revolutionary Court, and this ruling was upheld on appeal. After six years, his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. While this change prevented his execution, it placed him in the category of indefinite imprisonment, which in practice can last for decades and significantly restricts access to review mechanisms.

Key Points in the Judicial Process

• Severe Security Charge: The “Moharebeh” charge is among the most serious in Iran’s political-security cases, with broad legal and practical consequences.

• Sentence Conversion: His initial death sentence and subsequent commutation to life highlight both the severity of the charge and later judicial interventions, though without resolving potential injustices in due process.

• Continued Imprisonment Despite Legal Changes: Legal reforms allowing retrials, sentence reductions, or conditional release in such cases have not been applied to Baymani.

Detention Conditions and Transfers

Throughout his imprisonment, Baymani has been repeatedly transferred between prisons and wards, including Rajai Shahr, Evin, Ghezel Hesar, and Asadabad Prison. Transfers were often violent and carried out without regard to the separation of crimes. He has repeatedly protested mistreatment, lack of medical care, and inhumane conditions, including hunger strikes in 2011 and 2018.

Observations on Prison Standards

• Frequent Transfers: Repeated relocations disrupted family contact, legal representation, and medical treatment.

• Solitary Confinement as Punishment: Baymani has been held in solitary on numerous occasions, sometimes for weeks, in violation of international standards that require solitary to be rare and tightly controlled.

• Violence in Prison: Reports document multiple instances of physical and verbal abuse by prison authorities, including beatings during transfers and threats during hunger strikes.

• Denial of Medical Care: Despite suffering from heart disease, blocked arteries, chest pain, hypertension, diabetes, kidney stones, and requiring angiography and mitral valve surgery, he has repeatedly been denied hospital access. This deliberate deprivation violates the right to health and, in some cases, the right to life, and is often used as a form of pressure.

Access to Family, Lawyer, and Leave

In recent years, Baymani has not been granted furlough. Reports indicate limited access to both family and lawyer, restricting not only his well-being but also his ability to pursue legal remedies.

Potential Legal Pathways (General Recommendations)

1. Retrial: Exploring new evidence or procedural flaws.

2. Sentence Reduction or Commutation: If legal grounds allow.

3. Conditional Release / Suspension of Sentence: Based on duration served, conduct, and medical condition.

4. Addressing Rights Violations: Including access to medical care, protection from abuse, family visits, and legal counsel.

5. International Documentation and Advocacy: If domestic channels remain blocked.

Timeline Summary

• 2000 (1379): Arrest; charged with Moharebeh through collaboration with the PMOI

• Initial Sentence: Death penalty commuted to life imprisonment

• 2000s–2020s: Years spent in Rajai Shahr Prison; repeated transfers

• 2011–2016: Several hunger strikes, solitary confinements, violent transfers reported

• 2018: 57-day hunger strike in protest of denial of medical leave and new case fabrication

• 2023–2024: Transfers between Evin, Ghezel Hesar, and Asadabad Prisons; medical furlough cut short; violent rearrest; chest injury during prison violence in February 2024

• Present: Serving life sentence in Ghezel Hesar, without medical access, furlough, or consistent family contact

Conclusion and Importance of Review

Despite legal changes enabling retrials, reductions, or release for those convicted of Moharebeh, Afshin Baymani remains in prison. His case highlights the broader plight of long-term political-security prisoners in Iran, underlining the need for both domestic and international mechanisms to review and reduce such sentences. His situation emphasizes denial of fundamental rights during imprisonment—furlough, visits, legal access—and the urgent necessity of sustained advocacy.

Urgent Needs:

• Regular, equal access to lawyer and family

• Independent medical evaluation, particularly after reports of violence and long-term health conditions

• Legal review for retrial, sentence reduction, or release under current laws

• Enforcement of prison regulations on visits, contact, and furlough

• Access to adequate healthcare and treatment

About this Series

This report is part of HRANA’s “More than Two Decades Behind Bars” series, aimed at continuously documenting long-term prisoner cases and reminding society of the collective responsibility to make their struggles visible and pursue their rights.

More than Two Decades Behind Bars, Prisoner Profiles – No. 5: Saeed Masouri

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News, Prisoners
ahvaz, Evin, Ghezel Hesar, HRANA, Rajai-Shahr, Saeed Masouri, TwoDecadesBehindBars, سعید ماسوری

HRANA – Many political and religious prisoners in Iran have endured over twenty years behind bars. To prevent their cases from fading from public memory in the flow of daily news, HRANA has launched a series of reports highlighting their situations. Each installment outlines the prisoner’s legal case, detention conditions, access to rights, and immediate needs.

In this installment, HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists in Iran, reviews the current situation of Saeed Masouri after more than two decades in prison.

Profile

• Name: Saeed Masouri

• Year of Arrest: 2000 (1379 in the Iranian calendar)

• Declared Charge: Moharebeh (enmity against God) through membership in the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI)

• Initial Sentence: Death

• Current Sentence: Life imprisonment (commuted by one degree)

• Detention Locations:

◦ 14 months in solitary confinement at the Ahvaz Ministry of Intelligence detention facility

◦ Ward 209 of Evin Prison

◦ Several years in Rajai Shahr Prison (Karaj), including transfers between wards

◦ June 2015: moved to the IRGC-controlled ward of Rajai Shahr

◦ August 2017: forcibly transferred from Ward 12 to Ward 10 of Rajai Shahr

◦ August 2023: after Rajai Shahr’s closure, moved to Ward 8, Hall 10 of Evin Prison, then a month later to Ghezel Hesar Prison

◦ September 2023: transferred from the secure unit (Ward 3) of Ghezel Hesar to Dar al-Quran Hall (Ward 4), designated for drug-related prisoners

◦ August 2025: exiled from Ghezel Hesar to Zahedan Prison; after rejection there, secretly transferred and ultimately returned on August 5, 2025, to solitary confinement in Ghezel Hesar

• Furlough/Access: No furlough reported in recent years; limited access to family and lawyer

• Current Status: Serving life imprisonment despite legal changes that could allow review or sentence reduction

Case History

Dr. Saeed Masouri, born in 1965, lived in Norway for his studies. Upon returning to Iran, he was arrested in Dezful on January 8, 2001, on charges of membership in the PMOI. His family was informed in May 2001.

In 2002, the Revolutionary Court in Tehran sentenced him to death on charges of moharebeh. His sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment. While this prevented execution, it effectively placed him among those serving indefinite sentences, limiting opportunities for judicial review or relief.

Key points in the case:

• Severe security charges: Moharebeh is among the most serious charges in Iran’s political-security cases, carrying broad judicial and punitive consequences.

• Sentence commutation: The initial death sentence and its later reduction to life imprisonment demonstrate both the severity of the charge and the judiciary’s capacity for intervention, but do not necessarily address concerns over fairness of proceedings.

• Continued imprisonment despite legal reforms: Although recent legal changes allow retrial, sentence reductions, or conditional release, Masouri remains imprisoned.

Detention and Transfers

Throughout his imprisonment, Masouri has been repeatedly moved: from solitary confinement in Ahvaz, to Ward 209 of Evin, to Rajai Shahr, and later to Ghezel Hesar and Zahedan. These transfers have often involved violence, including beatings during moves in 2017, 2023, and 2025.

He has staged hunger strikes in protest, including after being beaten and transferred without warning in 2017. Following Zahedan Prison’s refusal to accept him in August 2025, he was held in an unknown location for several days before being returned to Ghezel Hesar.

Observations on Conditions

• Repeated transfers: Frequent relocations disrupt access to family, lawyer, and healthcare.

• Solitary confinement as punishment: He spent 14 months in solitary in Ahvaz, and has repeatedly been returned to solitary in later years, including in 2013, 2017, 2023, and 2025.

• Exposure to violence: Reports document physical and verbal abuse in Ahvaz, Rajai Shahr, Evin, Ghezel Hesar, and during forced transfers.

• Medical neglect: Despite suffering from chronic back pain, eye and dental problems, a broken ankle, urinary bleeding, and needing ultrasound examinations, prison authorities have systematically obstructed his access to specialized care. Denial of medical treatment is considered inhuman treatment and a violation of the right to health and even life.

Access to Family, Lawyer, and Furlough

In recent years, Masouri has been denied furlough. His access to family and his lawyer remains limited, negatively affecting both his mental well-being and his ability to pursue legal remedies.

Potential Legal Avenues (General Recommendations)

1. Retrial (Eda‘e Dadrasi): Based on new evidence or substantive/procedural flaws.

2. Sentence reduction or commutation: If legal grounds exist.

3. Conditional release/suspension: If requirements such as served time, conduct, or health conditions are met.

4. Remedying rights violations in detention: Including access to medical care, freedom from ill-treatment, and regular visitation rights.

5. International documentation and advocacy: In case domestic legal remedies are blocked.

Timeline Summary

• 2000 (1379): Arrest on charges of moharebeh through PMOI membership

• 2002 (1381): Sentenced to death; commuted to life imprisonment

• 2000–2001: 14 months in solitary, Ahvaz Intelligence facility

• 2000s–2010s: Long-term detention in Rajai Shahr Prison

• 2013: Solitary confinement reported; beatings in Rajai Shahr

• 2015: Moved to IRGC ward in Rajai Shahr

• 2017: Beaten and transferred to Ward 10, Rajai Shahr

• 2023: Transferred from Rajai Shahr to Evin, then Ghezel Hesar; solitary confinement and beatings reported

• 2025: Violently exiled to Zahedan Prison; after refusal there, returned to Ghezel Hesar solitary

• Recent years: No furlough, inadequate medical care, restricted access to family/lawyer

• Present: Still serving life sentence

Conclusion

Despite legal reforms enabling retrial, sentence reduction, or release for those convicted of moharebeh, Saeed Masouri remains imprisoned. His case exemplifies the plight of long-term political-security prisoners in Iran. Reviewing such cases is a vital step toward securing their rights and release.

Urgent Needs

• Regular, unrestricted access to lawyer and family

• Independent medical evaluation, especially after reported abuse

• Judicial review of case in light of legal reforms

• Compliance with prison regulations on visits, furloughs, and communication

• Adequate medical treatment

About this Series

This report is part of the “Two Decades Behind Bars” series, which aims to document the cases of long-term prisoners and to highlight the collective responsibility to ensure their visibility and pursue their rights.

Civil Rights Activist Raheleh Rahemipour Sentenced to Over Four Years in Prison Following Retrial

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News, Prisoners
Evin, Evin Prison, irgc, IRGC Intelligence, Raheleh Rahemipour, راحله راحمی

HRANA News Agency – The prison sentence of Raheleh Rahemipour, a 72-year-old civil activist currently imprisoned in Evin Prison, has been reduced to four years and two months following the acceptance of her retrial request. The revised verdict was issued by Branch 21 of the Tehran Court of Appeals, lowering her initial sentence of five years and ten months.

According to HRANA, the news agency of the Human Rights Activists in Iran, the updated ruling was recently issued by Branch 21 of the Tehran Court of Appeals and formally communicated to her defense attorney yesterday. Under the new sentence, Rahemipour has been convicted of:

“Assembly and collusion against national security” – three years, six months, and ten days in prison
“Propaganda against the regime” – seven months and twenty days in prison

Based on Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, which mandates the enforcement of the most severe sentence in cases involving multiple charges, Rahemipour will serve three years, six months, and ten days behind bars.

Legal Background and Arrest History

Earlier, attorney Payam Dorfeshan had announced that Branch 9 of the Supreme Court had accepted Rahemipour’s request for a retrial and referred the case to an equivalent court for reconsideration.

Rahemipour was arrested in late November 2023 after appearing at the Evin Prosecutor’s Office and was subsequently transferred to Evin Prison to serve her sentence.

Her original conviction was handed down by Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, which sentenced her to five years in prison for “assembly and collusion” and ten months in prison for “propaganda against the regime.” This ruling was issued following a trial held on June 16, 2020.

Rahemipour was previously arrested on November 12, 2019, by security forces in Tehran. She was subsequently transferred to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Intelligence Detention Center, known as Ward 2A of Evin Prison, before being temporarily released.

Given her advanced age, Rahemipour suffers from multiple health conditions and has been consistently denied access to essential medical care.

Judicial Case Filed Against Journalist Hadi Kasaie-Zadeh

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Freedom of Expression, News
Evin, Hadi Kasaie-Zadeh, Hadi Kasaiezadeh, tea smuggling scandal, Tehran Friday Prayer Imam, هادی کسایی زاده

A judicial case has been initiated against journalist Hadi Kasaie-Zadeh for publishing content critical of the Tehran Friday Prayer Imam.

A close associate of the journalist told HRANA: “The case was filed against Mr. Kasaie-Zadeh for his publication of material criticizing the Tehran Friday Prayer Imam and his involvement in a financial corruption and tea smuggling scandal. Kasaie-Zadeh has been accused of spreading false information.”

In May of this year, Kasaie-Zadeh was summoned to the Evin Prosecutor’s Office, where formal charges were brought against him. This case stems from a complaint by the Tehran Prosecutor’s Office for his coverage of the circumstances surrounding Nika Shakarami’s death.

On June 20, 2023, Kasaie-Zadeh was arrested, but he was released the following day after signing a commitment at one of Tehran’s security detention centers.

Seyed Hadi Kasaie-Zadeh Mahabadi has a history of facing judicial actions due to his journalistic activities.

Atefeh Chaharmahalian’s Suspended Sentence Lifted on Appeal, Resulting in Imprisonment

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Freedom of Expression, News
Atefeh Chaharmahalian, Evin, Tehran

The Tehran Court of Appeal has amended Atefeh Chaharmahalian’s initial suspended sentence, now imposing two years and eight months of imprisonment.

The original suspension for five years was revoked at the request of the Evin prosecutor’s office.
In accordance with Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, which mandates the enforcement of the harshest punishment in cases of multiple charges, Chaharmahalian will serve two years in prison.

Arrested in October 2022 amid nationwide protests, this poet and children’s rights activist was released on bail in December 2022. The Tehran Revolutionary Court had initially sentenced her to a fine and two years for “disseminating false information to disturb public opinion” and eight months for “spreading propaganda against the regime.” The original verdict, including a five-year suspension, has now been replaced.

In addition to her imprisonment, Chaharmahalian faces various restrictions, including a ban on leaving the country, limitations on using cell phones and social media, and prohibition from joining political parties or civil groups. Furthermore, she is mandated to conduct research on the topics of “physical and intellectual security, harm to peace, and the corruption and crimes of the Pahlavi regime.”

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Lawyer Mohammad Seifzadeh’s One-Year Sentence Upheld on Appeal

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Freedom of Expression, News
Ali Mazloum, Evin, Iranian Lawyer, ohammad Seifzadeh

The Tehran Court of Appeals has recently upheld the original one-year sentence against attorney Mohammad Seifzadeh. The case has been referred to the Evin Judgement Enforcement unit.

Initially, Branch 29 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided over by Seyed Ali Mazloum, found the lawyer guilty of “propaganda against the regime and spreading falsehoods.”

Seifzadeh faces this legal action as a result of co-writing an open letter with a group of lawyers and human rights activists, expressing concern to the UN Secretary-General about the widespread crackdown on protests in 2022.

It’s worth noting that he has a history of previous arrests and convictions related to his activism.

World Day Against the Death Penalty: Annual Report on Execution in Iran 2021-2022

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Executions, News
capital offense, Capital Punishment, Death Penalty, Death row, Death sentence, Drug-related charges, drug-related offenses, Evin, executions, executions in iran, iran death penalty, Juvenile Offenders, Rajai-Shahr, World Day Against the Death Penalty

Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)- On the World Day against the Death Penalty, the Center of Statistics of Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) has published its annual report in an effort to sensitize the public about the death penalty situation in Iran, particularly thousands of death-row convicts awaiting their looming executions.

HRA’s Statistics Center relies on the work of HRANA reporters, as well as a network of independent and verifiable sources. It also incorporates the judicial authorities’ announcements or confirmations of prisoner executions on media, and as such, is exposed to a margin of error representing efforts by the Iranian authorities to omit, conceal, or restrict the collection of such data.

Between October 10, 2021, and October 7, 2022, at least 528 convicts were executed by hanging in Iran, rising to 98% compared to the same period last year. Of these executions, one was carried out in public. Many of the defendants were denied a fair trial and due process.

Click here to download report in PDF format

HRANA obtained 439 reports regarding executions and death penalty in Iran during this period. The identified executed individuals, include 20 women and 6 juvenile offenders under the age of 18 at the time of alleged crime. Compared to the last period, the execution of female offenders has raised 55%.

According to the reports obtained by HRANA, over this period, Iranian authorities sentenced at least 89 defendants to death penalty, including at least 5 women, and 7 public executions.  Issuing death sentence decreased by 1% compared to the last year.

As the chart below shows a breakdown of executions by capital offense: 50.38% were charged with murder, 41.29% with drug and narcotic offenses, 3.03% with rape, 1.70% with non-political armed robbery/offenses classified as “corruption on earth,” and 0.38% with political or security-related offenses. Moreover, 0.38% were convicted of security charges (spying, terror, and bombing), 0.38% were convicted of armed robbery, and 2.46% of charges are unknown.

The pie chart below displays execution numbers by the province in which they took place. According to this chart, the Sistan and Baluchestan Province had the highest number of executions at 16%. Alborz (where three overcrowded prisons are located) and Fars Provinces come second and third, with 16.48% and 11.93%, respectively.

The chart below depicts the distribution of executions’ information sources. The chart indicates that 70% of HRANA-confirmed executions were not announced by the official Iranian sources. Undisclosed executions are referred to as “secret” executions.

 

The chart above shows the execution numbers by gender.

The pie chart below displays execution numbers by the prison where the executions were carried out. The Rajai-Shahr Prison officials have carried out the highest number of executions with 14.42%. Zahedan Prison ranks second with 12,33% executions.

The chart below displays percentage of executions carried out in public Vs. the number of executions that were carried out in prison. According to statistics, 0.19% of the executions in Iran were carried out in public.

***

Click here to download the report in PDF format.

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

Narges Mohammadi Still in Solitary Confinement One Week After Arrest

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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.

 

Mohammad Nourizad Released From Evin Prison; Ali Nourizad Returned to the Greater Tehran Prison at End of Leave

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News, Prisoners
Ali Nourizad, Evin, Evin Prison, Greater Tehran Prison, Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, Mohammad Nourizad, Nourizad, tehran prison, Ukrainian airline

On Wednesday, November 17, civil activist Mohammad Nourizad was released from Evin Prison after being granted an early release order. The day before his release, his son Ali Nourizad returned to The Greater Tehran Prison at the end of his furlough.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, political prisoner Mohammad Nourizad was released from Evin Prison after obtaining an early release order. The day before, Nourizad’s lawyer, Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, tweeted that the Supervisory Judiciary of Evin Prison had informed him in a phone call that the prosecutor agreed to end the prison sentence.

It is worth mentioning that Nourizad suffers from myriad health conditions, including asthma, heart problems and unstable blood pressure. Earlier, in protest against not receiving medical treatment, during a family visitation, he wounded his face and stated, “Each day I make this wound deeper to make my death happen sooner if they want me dead.”

In an open statement from that time, UN human rights experts expressed their serious concern over his conditions in prison. “We are seriously concerned at the mistreatment of Mohammad Nourizad and his continued imprisonment for expressing his opinion,” the statement read. “Furthermore, his continued detention despite medical professionals finding he cannot stay in prison given his serious health condition, and the resulting denial of adequate medical care, may amount to torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.”

Mohammad Nourizad is a 63-year-old filmmaker, writer, director and journalist from Iran. He was considered an outspoken and religious journalist who in recent years became one of the active critics of the Islamic Republic. He has been arrested and imprisoned many times.

Mohammad’s son Ali Nourizad was arrested by security forces in Tehran in January 2020 for protesting a rally against the downing of a Ukrainian plane by the IRGC, and for expressing sympathy with the victims’ families.  He was released on bail a month later. The Tehran Revolutionary Court eventually sentenced him to 3 and a half years in prison. This sentence was upheld by the Tehran Court of Appeals. He has been serving out his sentence in Greater Tehran since October of last year.

Prisoner of Conscience Soheil Arabi Released From Rajai Shahr Prison

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News, Prisoners
Borzajan City, Evin, Evin Prison, Greater Tehran Penitentiary, Greater Tehran Prison, Karaj, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai-Shahr, Revolutionary Court of Tehran, Soheil Arabi, Tehran

On Tuesday, November 16, prisoner of conscience Soheil Arabi was released from Rajai Shahr Prison after completing his sentence and sent to Borazjan to await the court decision about his two-year exile sentence.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Soheil Arabi was sent to Borazjan City accompanied by a police guard. It is yet to be decided whether he should stay in exile in Borazjan, and if so, how long. Because Arabi’s prison term was longer than the sentence required, either the difference will be subtracted from the current exile period, or the charge will be dropped altogether.

Arabi has been imprisoned since November 7, 2013, and never been granted leave. On January 21, 2020, he was relocated from Evin Prison to the Greater Tehran Prison.

While serving out the seven and a half year sentence, Soheil Arabi was convicted on charges from two new cases. In the first case, the Revolutionary Court of Tehran sentenced him to five years imprisonment on the charge of “blasphemy, propaganda against the regime and an offensive statement against the Supreme Leader”. For the second case, he was sentenced to two years imprisonment, two years of exile in Borazjan City, and paying a fine of 4 million tomans on a charge of “spreading lies in the purpose to disturb public opinion and propaganda against the regime”, and one year and eight months on the charge of “the destruction of public property”.

On September 18, 2020, Arabi was punitively relocated from the Greater Tehran Prison to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj. On October 20, 2020, after being held for 33 days in a solitary confinement cell, in a phone call to his family, he informed them about his relocation to the detention center at the disposal of IRGC, known as Ward 2 A of Evin Prison. On November 8, 2020, he was sent back to a solitary confinement cell in Rajai Shahr Prison. After 9 days, he was sent to the public ward of this prison.