Tag: Karaj

Three Christian Converts Sentenced to a Total of 15 Years in Prison and a Fine

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Alireza Nourmohammadi, Amin Khaki, Christian converts, Christianity, Citizens arrested, Citizens detained, Karaj, Milad Goodarzi, Religious persecution

Amin Khaki, Milad Goodarzi, and Alireza Nourmohammadi were sentenced by the Fourth Branch of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj to five years each in prison and a fine of 40 million tomans.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting the website Article 18 , the three christian converts were sentenced for “Propaganda and educational activities contrary to the holy Sharia of Islam”.

The citizens had been released on bail of 250 million tomans each in November 2020 after being summoned to judicial authorities and filing a case.

Despite the fact that Christians are recognized as a religious minority under Iranian 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.

Civil Activist Saeed Eghbali’s Hearing Permanently Damaged Amid Ongoing Medical Negligence in Rajai Shahr Prison

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Environment, Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Eghbali, Judge Mohammad Moghiseh, Karaj, medical neglect, medical negligence, Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, Rajai-Shahr, Saeed Eghbali

On June 19, civil activist Saeed Eghbali was sent to visit a doctor in Amir Alam Hospital after months of deprivation of medical care in Rajai Shahr Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, the specialist doctor stated that due to lack of timely medical attention and the severity of the infection, Eghbali will permanently lose 70% of his hearing. If the medication does not control the infection by next month, surgery will be needed to prevent it from spreading.

Mr. Eghbali was arrested at the beginning of a ten-day annual celebration for the Islamic Revolution’s Victory in 2018.

Eghbali has been enduring a 5-year sentence in prison since June 2020. Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran, presided by Judge Mohammad Moghiseh sentenced Mr. Eghbali to 5 years in prison on the charges of “conspiracy to act against the security of the country” and to 1 year in prison on a charge of “propaganda activities against the regime”.

This sentence was upheld by Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals. Using Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, 5 years imprisonment is enforceable to him on a charge of “Conspiracy to act against the security of the country”.

Saeed Eghbali wrote an open letter from Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj in May of this year. Below is an excerpt from the letter:

I was told,  “We arrested you on this date to let you know that you are too small to act against the regime”. All the harassment that the security system inflicted on me was because I had protested; I used my rights as a citizen to make changes to the condition of my country. When I realized what was going on, I decided to protest the system that knows no rights for its people. I was and am from a social class that has been oppressed and denied for decades.

Political Prisoner Abdul Rasoul Mortazavi Sentenced to 2 Additional Years

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Abdul Rasoul Mortazavi, Ayatollah Khamenei, Evin, Evin Prison, Hashem Khastar, Karaj, Khamenei, Mohammad Hossein Sepehri, Mohammad Nourizad, Mortazavi, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, Tehran

Political prisoner Abdul Rasoul Mortazavi was sentenced by Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran to two additional years in prison in a new case recently opened against him.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, the new charges against Mortazavi include “propaganda against the regime” and “disturbing public order”.

Mortazavi, who lost his leg during the Iraq-Iran war, was transferred from Evin Prison in Tehran to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj in early April. During the move, prison authorities took his prosthetic leg and did not return it.

Under the pretext of finally giving back his leg, officials then transferred Mortazavi to solitary confinement in Rajai Shahr on April 20th, where he is currently being held. He has been denied requests for sick leave and denied the right to make phone calls while in solitary confinement. His leg has still not been returned.

In mid-August 2019, Abdol Rasoul Mortazavi and 13 civil society activists published an open letter and requested the resignation of Ayatollah Khamenei. He was subsequently sentenced to 26 years in prison, from which 11 years are enforceable.

Mohammad Nourizad, Hashem Khastar, Mohammad Hossein Sepehri and several other signatories to the statement are also currently serving prison sentences.

Political Prisoner Motaleb Ahmadian Denied Medical Care in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj

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Prisoners
Ahmadian, amin Vaziri, Karaj, medical neglect, medical negligence, Motaleb Ahmadian, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai-Shahr

Political prisoner Motaleb Ahmadian, who is currently in his 11th year of imprisonment in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj, has been denied medical care despite his serious physical and mental condition.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Ahmadian has been suffering from orchitis during the past years and the infection has now been transmitted to his bladder.

According to a source close to the prisoner’s family, Ahmadian recently reported in a phone call that his physical and mental condition had deteriorated following a lack of medical attention. “Officials promised to take him to a hospital for treatment but as of yet they have not fulfilled their promise and the prisoner’s physical condition is getting worse by the day,” the source said.

Earlier, the infectious disease specialist and general practitioner doctor at Evin Prison Medical Center had repeatedly emphasized that Ahmadian must be visited by a surgeon and urologist and that chemotherapy, sonography, and related tests must be performed. The specialist further emphasized that Mr. Ahmadian needs an MRI every six months due to a spinal complication and should visit a neurologist to prevent the disease from progressing and treatment. This has not been achieved so far due to opposition from Amin Vaziri, the assistant prosecutor in charge of political prisoners.

37-year-old Motaleb Ahmadian was arrested in October 2010 and, after about 230 days in solitary confinement, he was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment in Minab Prison, far from his hometown of Baneh City in Kurdistan Province.

At his first lawsuit, Ahmadian was arrested on a charge of Moharebeh, a pillar of Sharia Law that is typically applied to those connected to acts of armed rebellion against the state. The term, which can be loosely translated as “waging war against God”, has been used to incriminate members of opposition groups that may have used violence to rebel against the Islamic Regime, even if they themselves have not been involved.

Three more cases were later opened against Ahmadian and he received more sentences, including fines and imprisonment.

 

 Political Prisoner Soheil Arabi Faced with New Charges

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Arabi, Evin Prison, Greater Tehran Penitentiary, Greater Tehran Prison, Karaj, prisoner of conscience, Rajai Shahr Prison, Shahr-e-Shahri, Soheil Arabi, Tehran

On May 31, Soheil Arabi, a prisoner of conscience in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj, was taken to a virtual arraignment hearing on new charges.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Branch 3 of the Evin Prosecutor’s Office held the hearing and charged Arabi with “propaganda activities against the regime and disturbing the public opinion”.

Mr. Arabi was accused of creating reports on the poor condition of the Greater Tehran Penitentiary, criticizing the conduct of prison authorities, especially the prison’s assistant prosecutor, going on a hunger strike to support political prisoners deprived of  medical treatment, and writing statements in support of the nationwide protests of November 2019.

Arabi was punitively transferred from the Greater Tehran Prison to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj last September. He was then summoned and acquitted by Branch 8 of the Shahr-e-Shahri Prosecutor’s Office for another lawsuit in December.

Soheil Arabi has been imprisoned since November 2013 and has been deprived of leaves of absence throughout his entire imprisonment.

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Arjang Davoodi Transferred to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj in Eighteenth Year of Imprisonment

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Arjang Davoodi, Davoodi, Greater Tehran Penitentiary, Greater Tehran Prison, Karaj, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, Sistan and Baluchestan, Zabol, Zahedan Prison

Last week, 69-year-old political prisoner Arjang Davoodi was transferred from Zahedan Prison in Sistan and Baluchestan Province to the Greater Tehran Penitentiary and then to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, in 2016  Mr. Davoodi was transferred to Zabol and then Zahedan Prisons in Sistan and Baluchestan Province to serve his sentence in exile.

Davoodi is currently serving his 18th year in prison.

Reza Mohammad Hosseini Beaten by Doctor in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj

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Prisoners
Judge Ahmad Zargar, Karaj, Rajai Shahr Prison, Rajai-Shahr, Reza Mohammad Hosseini, Tehran, Tehran Court of Appeals

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists (HRA), Reza Mohammad Hosseini, a political prisoner in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, was beaten by a prison doctor on May 29 after objecting to the lack of medical treatment for fellow prisoner and labor activist Ali Ishaq.

Hosseini, who is serving a seven-year sentence, was beaten, insulted, and humiliated by prison officials for refusing to wear prison uniforms, handcuffs, and shackles last November.

In May of 2019, Reza Mohammad Hosseini was sentenced by the Revolutionary Court of Tehran to 16 and a half years in prison on charges of conspiracy, insulting the leadership, illegally leaving the country, illegally entering the country, and disobeying the orders of agents.

The verdict was upheld by Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Ahmad Zargar in May 2020.

Based on Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, a maximum sentence of seven years imprisonment will be imposed on him on charges of conspiracy and collusion.

Demanding Water, Wages, and Benefits: A Recap of This Week’s Protests

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Freedom of Expression, Labor and Guilds, Other
fair wages, Health Boulevard, Karaj, Kaveh Glass Industrial Group, Kermanshah, Khorramabad, Khuzestan province, Mashad, pensioners, Saravan, Shiraz, Tehran, Ukrainian plane crash, workers protest

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, at least 26 protests took place across the country this week, 6 of them today. The unassociated protests and their participants’ demands varied greatly, but all related, in one way or another, to political and economic institutions’ disregard for citizens’ needs. Here is a quick breakdown.

 

Pensioners Protest in 5 Cities

 

On May 16, retirees protested in at least 5 cities, including Tehran, Karaj, Khorramabad, Mashhad, and Kermanshah.

Pensioners carrying banners chanted slogans and marched in front of their local Social Security offices. They demanded an increase in pensions following the poverty line increase,  implementation of the equalization of salaries law, strict implementation of Article 96 of the Social Security Law, attention to supplementary insurance problems, and payment of end-of-year bonuses.

 

 

Teachers protest in Tehran and Tabriz

 

On May 16, several teachers protested in front of the Parliament Building in Tehran and in front of the Department of Education Building in Tabriz, calling for their demands to be addressed.

 

 

Families of the victims of the 2020 Ukrainian plane crash protest in Tehran

 

On May 16, a group of families of the victims of the 2020 Ukrainian plane crash gathered in front of the Judicial Organization of the Armed Forces in Tehran. The families protested the trial, the rejection of their request to study the case, and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif’s remarks about “curing the accident” in his leaked tape of the interview.

 

 

 

Municipal workers protest in Lowshan

 

According to the Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA), on May 16, workers of the Municipality of Lowshan protested low wages and insurance problems in front of the municipal building for the second day in a row. According to the workers of Lowshan Municipality, on the morning of May 15, the protest broke out after Lowshan’s mayor insulted several service workers in the yard and inside the building.

 

 

 

Kaveh Glass Industrial Group workers protest in front of Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare

 

According to the Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA), on May 16, a group of workers from the Kaveh Glass Industrial Group demanded fair working conditions and retirement benefits in front of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare.

 

Per the report, the workers demanded the right to retire after working 20 continuous years or 25 consecutive years, given the difficulty and high risk of the job.

 

According to news sources, the workers all have retirement status and have been insured in these difficult jobs for more than 20 years.  The workers claim that the employer not only did not help them to retire but also laid them off shortly before the benefits were set to activate. They are currently both jobless and unable to retire.

 

 

Teachers and staff of special-needs education schools protest in Khuzestan province

 

According to the Asr-e-Junub news agency, on May 16, teachers and staff of schools for children with special needs in Khuzestan province protested in front of the General Directorate of Education in Ahvaz. The protestors demanded increased salaries and the resolution of clerical insurance problems.

 

Literacy movement educators protest in front of Parliament Building

 

According to the ISNA news agency, on May 16, a group of educators of the literacy movement protested in front of the Parliament Building and requested Parliament representatives’ support, as their employment status is currently shaky.

 

Residents of Health Boulevard in Saravan protest in Sistan and Baluchestan Province

 

According to the Baloch Activists Campaign, a group of citizens living in Saravan’s Health Boulevard protested in front of the governor’s office and the office of Islamic Consultative Assembly representative Malek Fazeli on May 17.

 

The residents protested lack of electricity and poor infrastructure in the area, after numerous attempts to resolve the issue through the electricity department were unsuccessful.

 

Servants and school caretakers protest in Shiraz

 

According to the Free Union of Iranian Workers, on May 16, servants and caretakers of Shiraz schools demanded an increase in wages and benefits in front of the city’s education building.

 

Private school teachers protest in Ilam

 

According to the Free Union of Iranian Workers, on May 17, teachers and employees of private schools in Ilam protested outside the Department of Education building of the province. According to the report, the protestors have been working for years with very low salaries. They requested a salary raise and benefits increase and called on the elimination of discrimination they have been facing compared to government employees.

Safety Consultants protest outside Ministry of Labor building in Tehran

 

On May 19, a group of safety consultants from all over the country protested in front of the main door of the Ministry of Labor building in Tehran. They demanded an immediate cessation of the implementation of Technical Protection and Safety Services bylaws, and revision of the bylaws and instructions “in the presence of experts and representatives of real advisors”.

 

 

 

Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Water Company workers protest in Gachsaran

 

According to Kebnanews, on May 18, several members of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer Ahmad Water and Sewerage Company protested not receiving their wages and insurance benefits in front of the Dogonbadan’s Water and Sewerage Office in Gachsaran.  All of the protesting workers have been employed for more than 5 years by this company, and have not been paid for three months.

 

 

Karnameh Sabz’ teachers protest in Tehran

 

According to the Free Union of Iranian Workers, on May 19, teachers of Karnameh Sabz protested the uncertainty of their employment status in front of the Ministry of Education building in Tehran. Karnameh Sabz teachers are educators who took the Ministry of Education’s recruitment exam (Article 28 exam) and have been selected by officials, but no action has been taken by the ministry since the exam. On the previous day, teachers also protested in front of the Parliament building in Tehran.

 

 

Truck drivers protest in Arak  

 

According to the ISNA news agency, on May 19, several truck drivers in Arak protested for the fifth day in a row. They called on their union demands and complained about the failure of officials in the Road Maintenance & Transportation Organization.

Aseminun miners protest in Manujan in Kerman

 

On May 19, workers of the Aseminun mine in the city of Manujan in Kerman province protested not receiving their wages for the third day in a row of the strike. The

protesters demanded payment of their unpaid wages, the ousting of the current mine owner, and the transfer of ownership to the public sector.

Gardeners protest in Robat Karim

According to the Basi news agency, on May 20, several gardeners from Robat Karim protested in front of the governor’s office.  Protestors claimed their right to ownership had been violated by the Ministry of Agriculture Jihad even though they had the proper legal paperwork.

 

 

Agents and sellers of Sufi Cement protest in Tabriz

 

According to the Free Trade Union of Iran, on May 20, several agents and sellers of Sufi Cement gathered in front of the East Azerbaijan Governor’s Office in Tabriz to protest cement shortages.

Shareholders of Samen Coin protest in Tehran

 

According to the Free Trade Union of Iran, on May 20, 2021, a group of shareholders of Samen Coin protested in front of the Central Bank in Tehran.

 

Jovein Cement factory workers protest in Khorasan Razavi

 

According to the Free Trade Union of Iran, on May 20, 2021, workers of the Joven Cement Factory in Khorasan Razavi protested low wages and poor working conditions.

 

Villagers protest amid continued water shortages in the western suburbs of Karun

 

According to the IRIB news agency, on May 21, villagers of the western suburbs of Karun gathered in front of the Arvandan Oil and Gas Company refinery to protest authorities’ unfulfilled promises to address the ongoing water crisis in Karun. Twelve villages in the western suburbs of Karun, each with populations of  over 6,000, have been experiencing water shortages for nearly four years.

 

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.

 

Arash Sadeghi freed from Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Arash Sadeghi, Evin Prison, iran human rights, Karaj, political prisoners in Iran, Prisoner abuse, Rajai Shahr Prison

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, on May 1, 2021, political prisoner Arash Sadeghi was freed from Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj. After serving 5 years and 6 months in prison, including his previous detention, Mr. Sadeghi was released under Article 12 of the law on reducing sentencing. Previously, he was sentenced by the Revolutionary Court to 15 years, of which 7 years and 6 months were enforceable with the application of Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code. Since Mr. Sadeghi’s previous suspended sentence of 4 years had been served, only 7 years and six months of imprisonment remained enforceable after sum up of the issued sentences.

Despite the early release, Sadeghi’s time in prison has not been without cost. Until he was freed, Arash Sadeghi had been denied the right to visit and call his wife, Golrokh Ebrahimi Erayi, a political prisoner in Amol Prison. The couple had been prohibited from visiting, despite legal provisions for meetings between imprisoned family members residing in different prisons.  In 2017, Sadeghi went on a hunger strike for more than seventy days to protest her re-arrest, and the prolonged hunger strike caused irreparable damage to his physical health.

While in Rajai Shahr, Sadeghi also developed a malignant type of bone cancer called chondrosarcoma. Sadeghi underwent surgery to combat the disease, but prison officials denied him access to the tri-annual post-surgery treatment recommended by physicians, leading to myriad complications. The lack of adequate treatment, coupled with the permanent physical damage from his 2017 hunger strike had devastating effects; Sadeghi’s chrondrosarcoma returned, and he needed to undergo an additional 30 sessions of radiotherapy and kinesiotherapy.

This is the most recent release of political prisoner Arash Sadeghi, who has spent the last decade serving a series of sentences for his human rights work. Sadeghi was first arrested by Ministry of Intelligence agents in July 2009 in front of Allameh Tabatabai University in Tehran along with several students protesting the 2009 election results. He was released on bail 90 days later. In 2010 he was re-arrested and imprisoned in ward 350 of Elvin Prison for 15 months. Sadeghi was arrested yet again in 2014 by IRGC intelligenge, and released on a bail of 600 million tomans in March of 2015. Finally, and most recently, he was arrested in June 2016 and sent back to Elvin Prison, and then transferred to Rajai Shahr, where he  remained until his May 1st release.

Whether Sadeghi is able to recover from his time in prison remains to be seen, but a recent bone marrow scan test confirms promising signs in the body.