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Victims of November 2019 Protests Call for Concrete Action Ahead of The Anniversary

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NOVEMBER 15, 2019: A sudden and substantial hike in the cost of fuel sparks unrest across Iran. Individuals across the country pour into the streets in what soon becomes mass protests covering a reported 104 cities across Iran. 

 

As the anniversary of the November protests approaches, HRA has spoken with Iranians calling for concrete action against those responsible for violent crackdowns against protesters including arbitrary and incommunicado detention, illegal use of force, and torture among other serious violations. For nearly two years, perpetrators have, for the most part, enjoyed widespread impunity. Domestically, some have even seemingly been rewarded. Indeed, individuals such as now-President Ebrahim Raisi, a known and serious violator, have risen to top positions of power.

Soheila, a 45-year-old mother whose son was shot in the November 2019 protests, highlights the shortcomings of the judiciary in Iran, telling HRA, “I hope that accountability will mean that next time, my child, instead of taking to the streets, can work through established pathways to hold corrupt people accountable for their actions.”

November 2019 saw the deaths of several hundred Iranians  (227 were verified by HRA) in what is arguably a state-sanctioned arbitrary deprivation of life. In addition over 7,100 were arbitrarily detained, some remain detained today. Although the violations noted above have been extensively documented, little has been done to hold perpetrators accountable.

Figure 1: reported November 2019 protest points -black denotes locations where the killing of protester(s) were reported (Human Rights Activists in Iran)

 

Elika, 25, told HRA, “Without accountability for violations that occurred in November 2019, the cycle of repression and violence will not end. Those that intend to perpetrate future abuse [on us] need to see accountability. Maybe then they will take a moment to think before pulling the trigger.”  In a recent post in the Atlantic Council IranSource blog, Skylar Thompson, HRA Senior Advocacy Coordinator, stated similarly, “Without concrete action to fight the plague of impunity that covers Iran, these violent events will only continue to occur and the Iranian people will continue to suffer.”

Iran has proven unwilling to investigate and prosecute those responsible through domestic judicial frameworks. This unwillingness is paired with the fact that Iran’s judiciary is in no way impartial and is in fact led by the very perpetrators responsible for the noted violations. Unfortunately, violations of fair trial standards have become status quo.

When asked what accountability looks like to him, Hafez, 22, told HRA, “They should handcuff the perpetrators. […]. They should be prosecuted in a public court and imprisoned.” He continued, “Once handcuffed, perpetrators should have to look the victim’s mother in the face to calm her heart.” Nazanin, 32, told HRA that accountability, in her view “is [the Islamic Republic] honestly and openly admitting wrongdoing.”

HRA has identified 54 individual and seven institutional violators connected to the November 2019 protests. It Is noteworthy that a number of those violators have also been complicit in numerous additional acts of repression against protesters including in 1988, 2020 (protests over the shooting down of Ukrainian airliner), 2021 (protests over resource mis-management in Khuzestan), and many instances in between. This repeated action is a direct consequence of the lack of accountability.

The following section lists notable individuals responsible for repeated serious and widespread rights violations. Extensive and credible documentation is readily available. HRA calls on the international community to hear the pleas of Iranians like Hafez, Nazanin, and Elika and utilize available documentation to take concrete action against those responsible.

*For a more in-depth look at the listed violators visit www.spreadingjustice.org or select a name and be directed to a violator profile that includes several data points including an overview of violations, employment history, as well as additional evidentiary documentation. 

 

Government 

Mojtaba Raei
Special Governor, Najafabad City of Isfahan Province
Deputy Governor of Isfahan

Roham Bakhsh Habibi
Police commander of Fars Province

Lotfollah Dezhkam 
Representative of the Supreme Leader, Fars Province
Friday Imam of Shiraz

Leila Vaseghi
Governor of Quds City

Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli
Ministry of Interior
Chairman of the Security Council
Deputy Leader of the Islamic Republic Police Force

Jamal Alami Nisi
Governor of Ahvaz and Chairman of the Ahvaz City Security Council

Masoumeh Khanfari
Governor of Karoun City

Nik-Mohammad Balouch-Zehi
Director General, Information and Communications Technology Department of Sistan and Baluchestan Province

Seyed-Vahid Haghanian aka “Vahid” or “Sardar (General) Vahid”
Executive and Special Affairs Deputy of the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader’s office

Saeed Jalili
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council

 

Police 

Ali-akbar Javidan
Kermanshah Police Chief

Hossein Rahimi
Head of Tehran Police Forces

Hossein AshtariFard
Commander of the police force of the Islamic Republic

Gholamreza Jafari
From November 12, 2019 to now: Commander of the Hormozgan Police Force

Hassan Karami
Command of the Special Unit of the Police Force

Mohammad-Hossein Babakalani
Retired Police Force

Saeed Motaharizadeh 
North Khorasan Police Chief

Reza Papey
Police commander of Mahshahr City

Abdolreza Nazeri
Commander of the Kerman Police Force

Ruhollah Geravandi
Dezful Police Commander

Manouchehr Amanollahi 
Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Police Commander

 

IRGC

Kioumars Heydari
Brigadier General IRGC

Hossein Taeb
Former Head of the IRGC Intelligence Organization

Hassan Shahvarpour
Commander of the Khuzestan Provincial IRGC force (Valiasr IRGC base)

Masoud Khorramnia
Second Brigadier General (IRGC)
Commander-in-chief of West Azerbaijan province

Mohammad-Esmaeil Kowsari
Senior Commander, IRGC

Hossein Salami
Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC

Mohammad-Reza Yazdi
Senior Commander of IRGC

Gholamreza Soleimani Farsani
Commander of Sahib al-Zaman IRGC in Isfahan province

Gholam-hossein Gheibparvar
Commander of the Basij
Deputy Commander of the IRGC, Imam Ali’s HQ

Mousa Ghazanfar-Abadi
Former head of the Islamic Revolutionary Tribunals of Tehran

 

Judiciary 

 

Dadkhoda Salari Manzari
 Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Kerman City

Heydar Asiabi
Senior Judicial Official, Judiciary of the Islamic Republic

Alireza Aghajari
Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Pardis city, the former prosecutor of Mahshahr city

Peyman Samadi
Prisoner Supervisor in Ward 9, Evin Prison
Deputy Director of the 2nd Brigade in Fashafoyeh Prison

Mehdi Mohammadi
Deputy Prosecutor of Boroujerd

Hamid Golinejad
Head of Branch 101 of the 2nd Criminal Court of Urmia

Ali Esfahani
Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Isfahan Province

Ali Zare
General and Revolutionary prosecutor of Najafabad city in Isfahan province

Yahya Jafari 
Judicial Official, Judiciary of the Islamic Republic

Mohammad-javad Heshmati Mohazzab
Senior Judicial Official, Judiciary of the Islamic Republic

Mohammad-Hossein Sadeghi 
Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor of Kermanshah Province

Hamid Mohammadi
Head of Evin Prison

Mansour Mohammadi Khabbaz
Public and revolutionary prosecutor of Dezful

Abbas Hosseini-Pouya 

Public and Revolutionary prosecutor of Khuzestan Province

Hamid Asgaripour
Shahriar County Public Prosecutor and Revolution

Mahamad-Reza Amouzad Khalili
Judge, Head of Branch 24 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran

Seyed-Ahmad Zargar
Judge of the Islamic Revolutionary Tribunal of Tehran

Iman Afshari
Judge, Head of Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran

Mohammad Mahdi Mahmoodi
Deputy Chief Justice of the General and Revolutionary Courts of Shiraz
Head of the 2nd Criminal Court
Judge of Branch 101 of the 2nd Criminal Court of Shiraz

Ali Alghasi-Mehr
General prosecutor of Tehran

 

Media 

 

Hossein Shariatmadari
Kayhan Institute

Abdolali Ali-Asgari
Head of the Islamic Republic Broadcasting Organization (IRIB)

Ameneh-Sadat Zabihpour
Interrogator-Reporter

____________________________________________________

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

 

Several Arrested in Isfahan by IRGC Intelligence

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Several citizens have reportedly been arrested by an IRGC Intelligence unit in Isfahan.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting IRNA, a spokesperson for the IRGC’S Intelligence unit in Isfahan City, known as Sahib al-Zaman IRGC, announced that several members of an “anti-revolutionary group” have been arrested.

“The members of this anti-revolutionary group aimed to act against national security both on social media and in public,” the IRGC’s public relations spokesperson claimed. “These acts include spreading anti-regime tracts on streets to call for protest and unrest, agitating and hiring thugs for their own purposes, planning to disturb public order and security, sabotage and causing chaos and unrest all over the province.”

This report does not reveal the identity and whereabouts of the detainees.

Several Citizens Arrested by IRGS’s Intelligence Unit in Robat Karim

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The County Prosecutor of Robat Karim City recently announced the arrest of several citizens by IRGS’s intelligence unit.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Rokna, the citizens were arrested largely on charges of membership in what he called an “anti-revolutionary network”.

“In the last week, IRGS’s intelligence agents could detect and arrest the heads of an anti-revolutionary network in Robat-Karim city”, the County Prosecutor commented. “These arrested people were transferred to the jail after being notified of the charge and the issuance of an arrest warrant.”

He added, “Investigation and identification of the related people to this case is still ongoing.”

This report does not mention the number of arrestees, their identities, or their current whereabouts.

 

Seventeen People Arrested for “Promoting Western Lifestyle” on Instagram Pages in Behshahr

Posted on by A MN
Cultural, Freedom of Expression, News
Article 3, Behshahr, censorship, Cyber Police, FATA, irgc, Rokna, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, western lifestyle

Seventeen people were recently arrested in Behshahr for reasons related to their activity on their personal social media pages.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting Rokna News, the Iranian Cyber Police cited “promoting a western lifestyle, publishing obscene pictures and modelling ads” as the reasons for the arrests.

By order of a judge, the police erased all contents of the cited posts and replaced them with FATA’s logo. What the regime labels as “promoting a western lifestyle” has long been a source of tension between the regime and the Iranian people.

Imposing a certain lifestyle on citizens stands in blatant violation of Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which entitles everyone the right to life, liberty and security of person. Additionally, Article 12 of this declaration affirms, “One shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honor and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.”

Media Activist Mehrnoosh Tafian Sentenced to Six Months in Court of Appeals

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Media activist and Ahvaz resident Mehrnoosh Tafian was sentenced to six months and eleven days in prison by the court of appeals in Khuzestan Province.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, from this prison term, three months and one day have been suspended for one year.

Mehrnoosh Tafian received three months and one day in prison on charges of “spreading lies with the purpose to disturb public opinions”. On a charge of “propaganda against the regime”, the court of appeal reduced the initial verdict from one year to three months and ten days imprisonment.

For the above-mentioned charges, the initial verdict of the Revolutionary Court of Ahvaz was three months and ten days imprisonment and one year respectively.

In October 2020, the IRGC’s intelligence agents raided and inspected her house. They confiscated her cell phone and some other belongings. After one month, she was summoned to appear at IRGC’s Intelligence Organization in Ahvaz for interrogation. On November 1, 2020, when she appeared at Branch 13 of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the revolutionary Court, she was sent to Sepidar Prison because she failed to provide the required bail.

Mehrnoosh Tafian is graduated from News College and living with her two sons in Ahvaz.

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Supreme Court Confirms Shaker Behrouz’s Death Sentence Despite Evidence Pointing Towards His Innocence

Posted on by A MN
Executions, Prisoners
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Branch 31 of the Supreme Court of Iran recently confirmed the death sentence of political prisoner Shaker Behrouz, who is currently being held in Urmia Prison, despite a strong alibi pointing to his innocence.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Branch 31 of the Supreme Court confirmed the death sentence of 33-year-old Shaker Behrouz last Tuesday, October 5. The verdict was confirmed in spite of the alibi statements of 12 witnesses, all of whose testimonies the court refused to hear.

The indictment alleges that Behrouz murdered a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

According to an informed source, security agents threatened the victim’s family’s, who was an IRGC member, to cut their allowance from the Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs, if they refused to accuse Behrouz.

Another informed source close to the victim’s family also said that the family does not believe he is guilty and are ready to testify to his innocence.

Twelve eye-witnesses signed a statement expressing their readiness to testify that Mr. Behrouz was in his shop when the crime was committed. Despite all the above, the court convicted the defendant without the presence of the family as accusers and hearing of eye-witnesses.

 

 

Sajad Zare Released from Prison After Completing Sentence

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Freedom of Expression, News, Prisoners
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On October 4, political prisoner Sajad Zare was released from Adelabad Prison in Shiraz after completing his sentence.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, on September 26,he was transferred to the detention facility of the intelligence office where he was interrogated for two days. Thereafter, he was sent back to Adelabad prison where he was kept in the quarantine section until his release.

On May 24 of this year, Zare was granted furlough and went back to prison on July 11.

Zare was arrested by the intelligence unit of the Revolutionary Guards on February 10, 2020, and transferred to the detention facility of the intelligence unit in Shiraz. After completing the interrogation process, he was relocated to Adelabad Prison.

Addressing the first part of his case, the revolutionary court sentenced him to 17 months imprisonment on a charge related to “offensive statements against the supreme leader of Iran” and to 7 months on a charge of “propaganda against the regime”.

For the second part, he was condemned to five years imprisonment for the charge of “blasphemy”. The latter was reduced to 2 years by the court of appeal held in Tehran.

Zare is 33 years old and a resident of Shiraz.

Soheila Hejab Beaten in Garchak Prison While on Hunger Strike

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Several inmates convicted of violent crimes recently beat political prisoner Soheila Hejab while she was on a hunger strike in Gharchak Prison in Varamin.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Hejab had been on a hunger strike since September 19 in protest of the increasing pressure on political prisoners and the intrusion of interrogators and other Judicial officers into court processing. Following promises from authorities, she ended her hunger strike on October 3.

“One of the shift officers on purpose opened the door of section 3 where inmates convicted for robbery are held,” an informed source told HRANA. “Several inmates of this section encroached into the section where she was located and took her to their section. They tore her winding-sheet which she was wearing as a sign of protest and forced her to eat in order to broke her strike. Once she resisted, they beat and took her back to her own section by dragged her on the floor.”

Mrs Hejab was arrested by security forces on June 1, 2019, and then released from Evin Prison in Tehran on a bail of 3 billion tomans on March 14, 2020.

Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court convicted her to 18 years imprisonment on charges of “propaganda against the regime, illegal assembly, incitement of public opinions to riot and organizing unlawful political groups”.

This long imprisonment stands at odds with Article 134 of Iran’s penal code whereupon the severest enforceable punishment is 5 years.

On May 23, 2020, the intelligence unit of the Revolutionary Guards arrested and transferred her to Gharchak Prison in Varamin city to serve out her sentence.

In December 2020, the revolutionary court held a new session for new indictments such as ” propaganda against the regime” and “incitement of public opinions”. Her phone calls while in detention were published online and presented in court as evidence for the above-mentioned charges. Mrs Hejab has been once arrested in Shiraz and released by granting pardon after five-month imprisonment.

 

 

Security Forces Arrest Three Christian Converts in Rasht

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News, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Ahmad Sarparast, Ayub Pour Rezazadeh, Christian converts, Citizens arrested, Citizens detained, Freedom of religion, irgc, Islamic Law, Morteza Hajeb Mashhoud Kari, Pur Rezazadeh, Rasht, Religious Minorities, Religious persecution, Saparast

On Sunday, September 5, Christian converts Ahmad Sarparast, Ayub Pour Rezazadeh, and Morteza Hajeb Mashhoud Kari were arrested by security forces in Rasht and taken to an unknown location.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activist, Mr. Sarparast and Mr. Pour Rezazadeh were detained in a house church. Security forces raided the homes of these citizens and confiscated some of their belongings, including cell phones, books, and pamphlets related to Christianity. According to an informed source, the agents behaved violently and insultingly and refused to show arrest or search warrants.

Relatives of these citizens are said to have been threatened by IRGC intelligence agents for providing information about the condition of their loved ones. Also, one of their relatives along with several other members of the house church were summoned to the Rasht IRGC Intelligence Office and interrogated.

According to a source close to the families of these citizens, after their families went to Branch 4 of the Rasht Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office to follow up on the case, they were not given any answer and were told, “Do not follow up. They will not be released any time soon. They do not deserve freedom and must stay.”

25-year-old Ahmad (Yohanna) Sarparast, 28-year-old Ayub (Farzin) Pour Rezazadeh, and 38-year-old Morteza Hajeb Mashhoud Kari are residents of Rasht.

Even though Christians are recognized as a religious minority under Islamic law, the security services nevertheless pursue the issue of Muslims converting to Christianity with particular sensitivity and deal harshly with activists in this field.

The Iranian regime targets Christian converts despite Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which state that every individual has the right to freedom of religion and belief and freedom to express it openly or secretly.

As of this writing, the reasons for the arrest, the charges against them, and the whereabouts of these citizens are unknown.

Citizen Detained by IRGC intelligence in Ardabil Province

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IRGC intelligence agents recently arrested a citizen in one of the cities of Ardabil Province.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting ILNA, the citizen was arrested for what is being called “insulting Islamic sanctities”, “disturbing the public mind”, and “publishing [disappointing] content to blacken [catastrophize] the situation in the country”.

The citizen was transferred to prison by order of a judicial official. The report does not mention the identity of the detainee, the name of the city he was detained in, or the prison where he is being held.