Iran
charges American journalist with espionage
Wednesday
April 8, 2009
TEHRAN,
Iran � An Iranian-American journalist detained in Tehran
has been charged with espionage, her lawyer said Wednesday.
Roxana
Saberi has been informed of the charges against her, her lawyer
Abdolsamad Khorramshahi told the Associated Press, without
providing any further details.
"Yes,
Saberi has been charged with espionage," he said.
The
charges against her come two days after her parents visited
their daughter in prison. The couple from North
Dakota met Saberi for half an hour at Evin prison
� the first time they had spoken to her since she called
them on Feb. 10 to say she had been arrested.
The
31-year-old U.S.-born journalist has reported for the BBC,
NPR
and other media. She was arrested in late January. Iranian
officials said at the time that she was working in the Islamic
Republic with expired press credentials.
Saberi
grew up in Fargo,
North Dakota, and is a dual citizen of the U.S. and Iran.
She has lived in Iran for six years and has reported for several
news organizations.
Her
parents, Reza and Akiko, arrived in Iran on Sunday as part of
their efforts to seek her release.
Saberi
is being held in Evin prison, north of the capital Tehran.
Earlier, the Foreign Ministry said she had engaged in
"illegal" activities because she continued working in
Iran after the government revoked her press credentials in 2006.
3/3/09
Iran
: Halt the execution of Mr. Habibollah Latifi
Defend
International has been informed by reliable sources about the
confirmation in appeal of the death sentence against Mr.
Habibollah Latifi who
was condemned to death after having been accused of "endangering
state security".
3/2/09
Early
morning of March 1st, 2009, four students affiliated with the
leftist "Freedom and Equality seeking Students"
movement were arrested by Intelligence Ministry agents and are
reported to have been transferred to Evin prison.
The situation of these students is not yet clear but, there is
concern that they will face persecution or solitary
confinement.
Student committee of Human Rights Reporters has announced
these students to be as follow: Sanaz Allahyari, Nassim
Roshanayee, Maryam Sheikh and AmirHossein Mohammadi. This
report has been confirmed by their families.
It is also reported that other students seeking freedom and
democracy have also been amongst those arrested.
Prior to this purge, two other students affiliated with the
same movement had been arrested in two different cities on 12
February 2009. Mohammad Poor Abdollahi and ALireza
Davoodi were both arrested in Ispahan and Tehran and are
detained in unknown locations.
On the verge of the "Student Day" in Iran,
in December 2007, intelligence agents had arrested 40 students
affiliated with the leftist who are known to be under torture
in the notorious 209 section of Evin.
More than 70 students have been arrested on 23 February 2009,
during recent protests against the burial of the remains of
those killed in the Iran-Iraq
war in University campuses. According to Iranian
student internet sites, 20 of those arrested are in Evin
prison. Four of these students who had not been in the
protests had already been arrestee at their homes on 24
February.
Many students had been treated in hospital because of knife
wounds received from thugs and Bassidge forces .
4 other students who had been arrested for participating in a
commemoration ceremony for Bazargan ( first prime minister
after Shah's downfall) , had been arrested on 5 February 2009
on charges of taking part in the ceremony, and are still in Evin
Prison.
On
the early hours of Saturday
morning 2009, Mehdi Ghassemzadeh , a follower of the
"Ahle Hagh" dervishes, was executed on charges of
blasphemy, in Urumieh prison.
Neither his arrest, charges nor imprisonment were officially
announced by authorities, but it is claimed that Mr.Ghassemzadeh
was arrested when he was wounded in an armed clashe with the
police in "Ojtapeh" ( A district in Urumieh) . He had
been in prison for 4 years till his execution.
His family was denied the corps of their son, and was told to
peruse the matter with the Intelligence Ministry.
It is worth noting that three others who shared the same case,
sentenced to be hanged have now received a thirteen year prison
sentence. These individuals are: ShahandAli Mohammadi, BakhshAli
Mohammadi, Ebadollah Ghassemzadeh.
All three are members of the "Atashgera" (Fire
lenient) sect in "Ojtapeh" district and have been
reported to have been tortured in prison.
According to Azerbaijan
websites following news on political prisoners, all three
individuals have been on hunger
strike in protest to Mr.Ghassemzadehs's sentence for
execution.
Parallel to the hanging of Mr.Ghassemzadeh, Human Right
activists are expressing concern on the possible hanging of
another follower of the dervishes ; Youness Aghayan in the
following days.
2/19/2009
The
Baha'i group arrested in the spring of 2008 will soon be sent to
the revolutionary courts
Source:
Baha'i World News Service
Reports
from
Iran
say that the case of the Baha'i group arrested in the spring of
2008 will soon be sent to the revolutionary courts. The
individuals who form the committee that was imprisoned are, seated
from left, Behrouz Tavakkoli and Saeid Rezaie, and, standing,
Fariba Kamalabadi, Vahid Tizfahm, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi,
and Mahvash Sabet.
The
European Union yesterday issued a statement expressing its
"deep concern" over
Iran
's plans to bring seven imprisoned Baha'i leaders to trial for
espionage and other charges soon. The Baha'i International
Community has called for their immediate release, maintaining
their innocence and characterizing the regime's claims as an
"escalation of its systematic crackdown on the Baha'is."
The EU statement coincided with increasingly sharp anti-Baha'i
rhetoric from Iranian officials, who said a trial for the seven
might come within a week.
The
seven Baha'i leaders have been imprisoned in
Tehran
for more than eight months, during which no formal evidence has
been brought against them and they have not been given access to
their legal counsel, Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi. Another 30
Baha'is are imprisoned in
Iran
, while 80 other prisoners have been released on collateral.
The
European Union said it was concerned that, "after being held
for so long without due process, the Baha'i leaders may not
receive a fair trial.
"The
EU therefore requests the Islamic Republic of Iran to allow
independent observation of the judicial proceedings and to
reconsider the charges brought against these individuals."
The
document was endorsed by the entire 27-nation membership of the
EU, along with
Turkey
,
Croatia
,
Macedonia
,
Albania
,
Montenegro
,
Iceland
,
Liechtenstein
,
Norway
,
Ukraine
, and
Moldova
.
Separately,
in Brazil yesterday, the president of the Human Rights Commission
of the Federal Chamber of Deputies sent an open letter to Iran,
asking for the release of the Baha?i prisoners.
"The
peace-loving, humanistic principles and practices for which the
Baha'is are known in
Brazil
have earned this community respect and credibility among the
country's human rights supporters," said Deputy Pompeo de
Mattos. "There is therefore no reason to doubt the
credibility of their claims."
Other
such strong statements of support have been issued over the past
several days from governments and parliamentarians in a number of
countries, including
Canada
,
Germany
, the
United Kingdom
, and the
United States
.
Meanwhile,
an official Iranian news agency report yesterday quoted a
judiciary spokesman as saying the seven Baha'is "would attend
their hearing sessions within one week."
According
to an Islamic Republic News Agency story, the spokesman, Ali-Reza
Jamshidi, told reporters at his weekly press conference yesterday
that the "seven committed criminal acts including spying for
foreigners."
Mr.
Jamshidi stated that the Baha'is would "definitely be allowed
to use legal counsel," though they have had no access to
their lawyer to date.
His
statement followed a harsh report on Sunday that quoted
Iran
's prosecutor general as saying the government plans the
"complete destruction" of Baha'i administration in
Iran
.
"The
administration of the misguided Baha'i sect at all levels is
unlawful and banned, and their ties to
Israel
and their opposition to Islam and the Islamic regime are
clear," said Iranian Prosecutor General Ayatollah Ghorban-Ali
Dorri Najafabadi, according to a report in Fars News.
"The
danger they pose to national security is documented and proven and
therefore it is necessary that any substitute administration that
acts as a replacement for the original be confronted through the
law," said Ayatollah Najafabadi.
Diane
Ala'i of the Baha'i International Community said the activities of
the Baha'i leaders had to do with meeting the minimum spiritual
and administrative needs of the 300,000-member Baha'i community of
Iran
. She said Ayatollah Najafabadi's attempt to portray their actions
as "dangerous" was baseless and that the government is
well aware that there is no truth to such allegations.
"How
can the chief prosecutor equate something so harmless as a group
of individuals who get together to give spiritual guidance and
administer such things as marriages and burials and children's
moral classes with something that threatens Iran's national
security?" said Ms. Ala'i, the Baha'i International
Community's representative to the United Nations in Geneva.
"After
they banned Baha'i administration in
Iran
in 1983, the government has always been aware of and informed of
the activities of these ad hoc groups.
"In
the eyes of the government, the only real 'crime' of the seven
currently in Evin prison ? along with the some 30 other Baha'i
prisoners currently held in
Iran
? is that they hold a religious belief that is different from the
majority in
Iran
, and that is something that the current regime finds
intolerable," she said.
Ms.
Ala'i also discussed remarks made yesterday by Mr. Jamshidi in
response to a question about Ayatollah Najafabadi's statements.
Mr. Jamshidi was quoted as saying: "Any acts which could be
taken as propaganda against
Islam
,
Iran
and its Islamic establishment is definitely considered a crime and
its perpetrators would be legally encountered."
"The
fact is that the Baha'i Faith is the only independent world
religion other than Islam that accepts the divinity of Muhammad
and reveres the Qur'an ? along with the holy books of all the
world's great religions. There is nothing anti-Islamic or
anti-Iran about the Baha'i Faith, its teachings, or the practices
of its followers. The government cannot impose its own
interpretation of Islam on the Baha'i Faith and conclude that the
Baha'i Faith is anti-Islam," Ms. Ala'i said.
"Indeed,
the lives of the seven leaders currently in prison reflect
lifelong efforts to promote the best development of Iranian
society as a whole, through the promotion of education, social and
economic development, and adherence to moral principle," she
said.
Earlier
this week, the British Foreign Office Minister Bill Rammell issued
a statement saying the Iranian government "appears to be
increasingly using vaguely worded charges to target human rights
defenders and religious minorities."
"It
is hard," said Minister Rammel on Monday, "not to
conclude that these people are being held solely on account of
their religious beliefs or their peaceful exercise of their right
to freedom of expression and association."
2/18/2009
The
detention of a family of Ayatollah Boroujerdi's followers
A
follower of Ayatollah Boroujerdi, her husband and child were
detained and transferred to an unknown point by security forces.
Yesterday morning February 17, the officials of Special Court of
Clergy and of Ministry of Information referred to the house of
lady.Zohre Sharifi, a follower of Ayatollah Boroujerdi, and
detained her, her husband called Mohammad Ansari and her
5-year-old child( Amirmahdi) and confiscated and took some of
their belongs. There is no information on their condition as yet.
It is reminded that lady.Zohre Sharifi had been detained along
with ladies. Zahra Abdollahvand and Maryam Ghasemi opposed to
Special Court of Clergy on January 28, but was released after
first investigations.
The pressures on Ayatollah Boroujerdi who is detained in solitary
confinement in
Yazd
prison, and also on his followers have been intensified during
last weeks.
Human
Rights Activists in Iran
February 11, 2009
Iran vows to try 7 Baha'i leaders as spies
Steven Edwards
http://www.dose.ca/news/story.html?id=1279136
UNITED NATIONS - Iran
pledged Wednesday to try seven leaders of the banned Baha'i faith on
charges of spying for Israel,
insulting Islam and spreading propaganda against the state, the ISNA
news agency reported.
The Canadian-based son of one of the group
- which was arrested last year - Wednesday night dismissed the
accusations as "just one big lie."
"I am very worried about this
development. Anything can happen. They face heavy accusations,"
Naeim Tavakkoli, 31, of Ottawa,
said of his father, Behrouz, 57, and the other six.
Canada denounced Iran's jailing of the
Baha'is at the time of their arrests.
"As stated by our government then,
these individuals were detained solely on the basis of their
faith," said Catherine Loubier, spokeswoman for Foreign
Affairs Minister Lawrence
Cannon. "These charges would be unacceptable and the
reports, if they turn out to be true, are very concerning."
Iranian authorities are holding the seven
in Tehran's infamous Evin prison, scene of the 2003 killing of
Montreal Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra
Kazemi. The
Canadian Baha'I News Service identified them as as Tavakkoli,
Saeid Rezaie, Fariba
Kamalabadi, Vahid
Tizfahm, Jamaloddin Khanjani, Afif Naeimi, and Mahvash Sabet.
"The alleged charges against the seven
accused belonging to the illegal Baha'i administration was
considered in the public Prosecutor's Office and according to the
warrant, the file will be remitted to the Islamic
Court for deliberation next week," said Hassan Haddad,
Tehran's deputy prosecutor, according to ISNA.
He mentioned some of the charges laid;
espionage for Israel; insults to the Holy beliefs of Islam; and
teaching against the regime, ISNA added.
Tavakkoli said the seven - among them two
women - have had no access to lawyers since their arrests. The first
of the group was arrested in March. Iranian intelligence officers
arrested the rest, including Tavakkoli's father, in dawn raids at
their homes in May.
"They have assigned my mother a few
visits, but only with an agent present," said Tavakkoli, a
structural engineer who arrived in Canada with his wife Neda, 29, in
late 2005.
"My father was not able to speak
freely, so we have no idea if he has faced abuse, but she could see
that he appeared pale and weak."
Founded in then-Persia in the 19th
century, the Baha'i faith today has about 300,000 followers
in Iran, but they have faced increasing persecution as
"apostates" since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The faith
has no formal links with Israel, but its international headquarters
is there.
"It is based inside modern-day
Israel's borders purely because the Persian and Ottoman
empires banished the faith's founder," said Gerald
Filson, spokesman for the 30,000-strong Baha'i community in Canada.
"The accusation of spying is
contrived, and has been used as a pretext to prosecute Baha'is for
more than three quarters of a century."
The seven were members of a national co-ordinating
group that helped to provide the "minimum needs of Baha'is in
Iran," international representatives have said.
12/22/2008
Behnood Shojaee to be executed in
less than 48 hours
Behnood
Shojaee, a juvenile on death row is in imminent danger of execution.
Despite
the fact that his execution was postponed three times, a formal
statement from the European Union was released condemning his
execution, a joint letter and press conference by 24 human rights
groups was written, help from celebrities, and a reduction in blood
money, Behnood Shojaee faces execution on Christmas eve.
Two
and a half years ago, 17-year-old Behnood Shojaee was convicted of
killing a 19 year old boy named Omid during a street fight involving
over a dozen boys.
Shojaee
says that he tried to stop the fight and used a chard of glass from
a broken soda bottle in self defence. He said he hit an attacker
once only with the piece of glass. Shojaee's lawyer Mohammad
Mostafaei argues that the coroner found several wounds by various
objects making it unable to assess who was responsible for the fatal
blow causing death.
At
first the family of the victim wanted over 2 million dollars US in
�blood money� compensation. After months of
negotiation, and his execution being postponed three times, the
�diyeh� was reduced to approximately $625,000 USD.
Shojaee
who grew up with his grandparents since the death of his mother at
age 10 from diabetes and a father living with depression from his
tragic loss, he could not afford the required �diyeh�.
Three
of
Iran
�s most prominent movie directors and actors ( Entezami,
Parviz Parastooyi and Kiymars PoorAhmad) opened
a joint account to help raise money for his �diyeh�.
In an unprecedented measure, the Iranian judiciary froze the bank
account, summoned the artists and threatened that �they shall
be investigated and it shall be assumed that they are not aware of
the special laws that were passed in 1997 by the State Expediency
Council which have strengthened the punishments against corruption,
embezzlement, and misappropriation and which carry punishments
ranging from one to seven years of prison�.
On
May 23rd 2008, in a joint statement, 40 European
countries condemned the execution of Behnood Shojaee.
In
August 2008 in a press conference in Geneva and one put on by Stop
Child Executions in London, 24 human rights organizations demanded
Iran to Stop the execution of Behnood Shojaee and Mohammad Fadaee as
well as the 132 children on death row at the time.
Despite
the international pressure, Shojaei could be executed in less than
two days.
This
is our last chance to save Behnood Shojaee�s life.
Stop
Child Executions has informed the office of the High Commissioner on
Human Rights at the United Nations, members of the Canadian
Government and members of the EU.
12/10/08
Students
harassed in prison for informing whereabouts of Alaei brothers
Hood Yazerlou, student of Industrial
management of Massoomein University of the religious city of
Quom, who was arbitrarily arrested on 24 May 2008, for no
clarified reason, has been transferred to solitary
confinement since 7 December in 209 section of Evin
prison and is under immense pressure.
Hood had informed his family during a visit about the transfer
of Kamyar and Arash Alaei (two Aids specialists also arrested
under charges of being in contact with the US) to solitary
confinement.
The two brothers are founders of the triangular system of
clinics established to curb Aids and are members of the Asian
society, and have been in prison since June this year. In this
regard, Hassan Haddad, deputy prosecutor general for security
was quoted to have stated "The US is infiltrating Iran,
and apart from using tough measures they use methods to
attract people to their cause".
According to information received by Human
Rights activists for Democracy in Iran, Mr.Yazerloo has
been transferred to solitary confinement and is deprived of
basic warmth and sanitary facilities under the present cold
weather. He has been deprived of blankets and windows leading
to his cell have been left open intentionally by prison
officials as a means of torture. Hood (nearly 21 years old) is
spending day and night under freezing conditions. He is left
in unbearable conditions as a weak light is always on so as to
prevent his sleep (if any).
Hood Yazerloo has been under these horrendous situations for
the past 6 months. During the first thirty seven days of his
solitary confinement, his prison conditions and sanitary was
extremely poor as the result of which his lungs were infected
and eventually he was coughing blood, but any medical
assistance for him was prevented by prison officials.
Mr.Yazerloo, 21, was arbitrarily taken in to detention, after
he came back from visiting his Aunt who is a member of the PMOI
stationed in Iraq.
12/09/08
Iranian
Students Day Demonstration at
Shiraz
University
Turns Against Government
Two
days after national Students Day, several hundred students at
Iran
's
Shiraz
University
marked the day with a demonstration against government policies,
despite attempts to shut it down.
Students protest at
Tehran
University
on December 7.
The
gathering, which was organized by the school's reformist Islamic
Council, was delayed by students for two days in an effort to
prevent clashes with security forces.
One
participant at the gathering told Radio Farda that as soon as the
event began, security agents from the university "tried to
disperse the students by taking away loudspeakers, which eventually
led to some physical clashes."
The
student, who requested anonymity for security reasons, said that
demonstrators protested the policies of "President Mahmud
Ahmadinejad, the supreme leadership in
Iran
that does not accept criticism, the clampdowns on the political
activities of university students, and the banning of [student]
publications."
The
student added that the gathering continued despite the heavy
presence of security agents.
The
Reformist Students of Tehran held their gathering earlier on
December 7, during which slogans such as "down with the
dictator" were chanted concerning Ahmadinejad's policies.
Students
Day in
Iran
commemorates the deaths of three students killed in clashes with the
police in the 1950s. It has become an annual event during which
liberal-minded students protest against government policies they
view as restrictive.
Sadegh Shojaii, Mehdieh Golroo, Majid
Dorri and Saiid Feizollahzade, the four students who had been
deprived of their studies by the University Allameh Tabatabaii,
have been arrested on Monday 24 November, after a sit-in and
then transferred to Evin prison.
According to the students committee of Human Rights reporters,
the four had begun a sit-in in front of the University which
drew attention and support from other students.
The four students had been deprived after there were protests in
Allameh for the shut down of Student press and clashes and
harassments caused by the security forces of the University in
the spring of 2007.
Their families had joined their protest in support of their
loved ones outside the University.
Before being arrested, Ms. Mehdieh Golroo had spoken of the
harassment by the University guards and said; "It was dawn,
all four of us were sleep. Suddenly we were confronted with 25
people who dragged us out of the University Campus. I told them
they have no right to speak and treat students like this, but
the security agent began using foul language and begun hitting
me instead, slapping me so much that I felt half of my face had
gone paralyzed and swollen.".
At least 500 students rushed to support the four subjects and
their demands; to be allowed to study.
It is noticeable that the Right to Education is one of the basic
rights of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 26,
and the Iranian constitution has also accepted this. But in
reaction to the explosive situation and the student's
activities, the Islamic Republic officials use the disciplinary
committees created in the Universities to curb student
movements.
September 22, 2008
According to Amirkabir
news site, political activist, Mr.
Mohammad Ali Mansouri has been sentence 17 years prison
and exile to Gohardasht
prison, for having participated in a ceremony marking the great
massacre of more than 5000 political prisoners in 1988 by
Khomeini's orders.
Mr. Mansouri was arrested in September
2007, at his home. This arrest was only three days after
the memorial held in remembrance of the massacred political
prisoners. In the attack, his belongings were confiscated, his
house searched and Mr. Mansoori was scuffled and transferred to
the notorious 209 solitary
confinement.
It is unclear, how ever, why the Intelligence Ministry has
removed the first applied charges against him, which entailed
his participation in the mentioned memorial
services, and later charged under other pretexts.
During the six month of his detention, Mr. Mansouri had spent
four months in the notorious 209 Evin section and in solitary
confinement. According to family members and eyewitnesses he has
been subjected to violence during his detention.
September 21, 2008
By IHRV
The prosecutor in the city of Mash-had
announced on Tuesday that in Mash-had jail alone there were 500
death row inmates convicted of drug dealing. The statistics,
combined with 150 death row convicts in the city of Dashtetan, is
one of two shocking statistics that have been announced recently.
Gholamhosein Esmaeili, who was discussing in the second session of
the coordinating council of crime prevention in Mash-had�s
prosecutor office, also stated an increase in the consumption of
narcotics and alcoholic beverages. Mr. Esmaeili claimed a 28%
reduction in legal cases filed with Mash-had courts and stated:
�at the present time, there are 500 drug dealers who are
waiting death punishment�. The Mash-had prosecutor gave no
indication of the details behind the case of those on death row,
however he said that the 500 convicts are being kept seperate from
other convicts with death punishment who are sentenced to death for
non drug-related transgressions. In the middle of Mordad (August) of
this year, the public relations branch of the court in Khorasan
Razavi quoted Mr. Esmaeili and reported the arrests of 4,400
individuals on drug charges in the first 4 months of the year.
Even though Mash-had, along with Qum, is one of two religious
centers in the country, according to officials the number instances
of drug abuse and alcohol consumption in both cities are high.
The publication of the figure of 500 convicts in Mash-had is the
second shocking number of those sentenced to death that has been
printed in recent weeks.
Two weeks earlier, the head of police in Dshtestan in Bushehr
province, with a population of 250,000 announced that the number of
death row inmates in the jails stands at 150 individuals.
Source: Rooz Online
September 12, 2008
Open Letter from the
Families of Currently Imprisoned Tabriz
The signatories of this letter�being the families of the
imprisoned students of Azerbaijan�respectfully bring forth
our objections to, and complaints about, the legal and security
departments for wrongfully
arresting our loved ones and subjecting them to mental and physical
pressure.
In July and August, our children were arrested by safety officials
and taken to the National
Security Office's temporary prison without an explanation.
There, in individual cells, they were interrogated day
and night and subjected to severe mental and physical pressures.
Our children were robbed of the most basic human rights granted to
an accused person, such as the right to meet with family, the right
to see a lawyer, and even the right to study or get fresh air.
Instead,
the accused were only allowed brief telephone communication with
their family members every two weeks.
Such restrictions have been implemented despite news of the waning
physical and mental
condition of our loved ones. This bad news has directly
caused stress, and even mental and emotional illness, for the
students' families.
As the Chief Justice, we request that you issue an order to deal
with the cases of our loved ones. We ask you to declare that the
treatment of our loved ones�appropriate only in the case of
serious crimes�is in no way proportionate to the actions of
these students. We ask that you match the imprisonment procedure
with accusations against the students�which are not serious
enough to warrant the current punishment. We would also like you to
grant our loved ones permission
to meet with their families and lawyers. Further, we request that
those who have been hit or injured be transported to a medical
center immediately.
The family of University
of Tabriz law student, Faraz Zahtab
The family of University of Tabriz law student, Aydin Khaje'i
The family of University of Tabriz mechanical
engineering graduate
student, Sajad Radmehr
The family of University of Tabriz mechanical engineering graduate
student, Mansoor Aminian
The family of University of Tabriz electrical
engineering student, Amir Mardani
The family of University of Tabriz geography student, Maghsood Ahdi
The family of former University of Tabriz student and military
officer, Daryoosh Hatemi
The family of "Malik Ashtar Isfahan" University student,
Majid Makooyizad
The Families of Currently Imprisoned Tabriz University Students
September 9, 2008
September 9, 2008
Political
activist Kourosh Ahmadi, from Karaj city, has been arrested by
the Intelligence security forces on 25 August 2008 and is at the
moment under interrogation and torture.
According to eye witness accounts and
family members, Kourosh was beaten up and abducted near his
home by plain clothed agents who appeared to be of the
Intelligence Minsitry.
On the other hand some prisoners of
Rajaii Shahr have asserted to have seen him in that prison
According to their reports, Mr.Ahmadi
is being held in the security section number 3, which is
officially run by the Intelligence section of the RGC (known
as the Sepah Pasdaran).
It is also reported that he is
prohibited from all contacts with his family and is under
intense interrogation and pressure.
Mr.Ahmadi has had a prior arrest in
2004 on charges of propagating against the State.
On August 25th 2008 a large number of
Kurdish political prisoners went on a hunger strike, to
protest against the brutal treatment of Kurdish political
prisoners, as well as the imposition of heavy sentences
including lengthy prison terms and the death sentence.
The Islamic Regime in Iran is well known for its inhumane
treatment of political prisoners in general, and ethnic
minorities in particular. Most of the Kurdish prisoners have
been subjected to severe physical and psychological torture;
many of them have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms, and
some to death.
Many of these prisoners are human rights, civil rights or
women's rights activists and they include teachers,
journalists, womens' rights activists and students. The trials
of these individuals have taken place behind closed doors,
without a defence lawyer and on numerous occasions without the
presence of the accused himself/herself.
Currently there are at least 8 Kurdish political prisoners on
death row, the names of these individuals include Adnan
Hassanpour, Hiwa Bwtimar, Farzad Kamangar, Anwer Hussein
Panahy, Farhad Vakily, Ali Haidarian, Arsalan Awliaiy and
Habibullah Latify.
Some of the prisoners sentenced to lengthy prison terms
include Ms. Hanna Abdi (5 years imprisonment), Ms. Zaynab
Baiazidy (4 years imprisonment), and Ms. Fatima Eftary (18
months imprisonment).
There are also many prisoners who are being held without a
charge being laid against them or without a verdict. Some of
these prisoners are Kawa Jwanmard, Ysir Guly, Hidayet Gazali,
Sabah Nasri, Masoud Kurdpur, Rwnak Safarzade, Kamran Alaiy,
Arash Alaiy.
We the undersigned urge The United Nations Secretary General,
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, The
European Union as well as Amnesty International and Human
Rights Watch to condemn the brutal treatment of political
prisoners in Iran, in particular the treatment of ethnic
minorities, and to pressure the Islamic Regime to:
1. Release all political prisoners who are being held without
a charge, or in the alternative to charge them with
internationally recognized crimes.
2. To rescind the death sentences for all political prisoners.
3. To have new trials for political prisoners whose trials
took place behind closed doors. These new trials must meet
international standards, be held in open court before a jury,
with the presence of the accused and his/her defence lawyer.
4. To allow for visitations from independent human rights
organizations to monitor the condition and treatment of
political prisoners in Iranian prisons.
This is a petition
has been created by Sayeh Hassan a human rights activist in
Canada and is addressed to Ban Ki-moon Secretary General of
the United Nations, Navi Pillay: United Nations Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights, The European Union,
Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
8/28/08
Two
years sentence for Kurdish students
Sabah
Nasri and Hedayat Ghazali have been sentenced to two years
imprisonment by the 13th branch of the revolutionary court.
Sabaha Nasri a student of the law faculty of Tehran University and
Hedayat Ghazali studying psychology in Alameh Tabatabaii
University, were involved in printing a student news release
called "Rozhameh", which covered articles on civil
rights for students. The Court has accused these students of
participating in illegal congregations.
This is while the two students have already spent 14 month in
prison, and accordingly their attorney, Mr.Nikbakht has filed a
complaint.
Recently Dorri Najafabadi, Tehran prosecutor, had warned students
that any one attempting to "Create a political trend",
will be dealt with by the Judiciary.
According to International Organizations reports at least 150
students have been detained and prosecuted during the past year.
Mohamad Hashemi and Bahareh Hedayat, the other two students
arrested by the Intelligence agency were released on 16 August
2008. They were charged to be in contact with opposition forces
outside the country. This is how the Agency has legalized the
arbitrary detention and arrest of the students.
Ahmad Ghasaban, Majid Tavakoli and Ehsan Mansoori, the three
famous Amirkabir University students were released on conditions
on 13 August 2008. They had been detained on charges of
"Insulting the sacred of the State".
8/25/08
Zeinab
Bayazidi is being punished for choosing a Kurdish name for
her shop and participating in the 1 Million petition
camping against gender apartheid. According to reports
received from The Iranian Women's Guild, she has received
a 4 year prison term and has begun a hunger strike in
protest to this charge.
Ms Bayazidi , 26 , and an activist
of the 1 million campaign petition and a graduate of
computer engineering , was summoned to the Intelligence
offices of Mahabad (Iranian western Kurdish region). She
was "trialed "with no attorney presence and
exiled to Zanajan. She is passing her eight day of
hunger strike at the moment.
Zinab had owned a health shop in
Mahabad called "Zeylan", named after a known
plant used for medical treatment. She threatened a
number of times by the Intelligence offices of Mahabad
to change the name claiming that the aforementioned name
is being used by the insurgent group "PKK" and
represented a "code". Since the name was a
regular official Kurdish name and legally used by the
registry offices of Kurdistan, she had decided to ignore
the warnings.
A member of Ms. Bayazidi's family
had informed the Iranian Women's Guild site that, the
Intelligence Ministry of Mahabad had summoned her in a
telephone contact for an interrogation 40 days ago.
After being interrogated for 2 hours she was released
and told to return in the next 2 days. She was arrested
the second time.
According to this information,
"She was refused an attorney and was sentenced with
the charges almost immediately". They have claimed
they were tricked by the court and Intelligence office,
and have asked for an attorney.
All human right and gender
equality activities in the Kurdish region have been
hampered under the excuse of the presence of opposition
groups and have grounded all activists. They are very
easily charged and their files are tempered with, to
make any legal defense, or support by other civil
activists, difficult.
8/14/08
According to reports from the
"Campaign to stop the death penalty in Kurdistan", so
far 8 political activists have been sentenced to death in the
Sanandaj district, West of Iran.
This includes Habibollah Latifi a student from the law faculty
of Sanandaj University in Ilam
province.
Habibollah , 26 years old , has been in detention since the
beginning of September
2007.
He has been charged for being an infidel (The term used against
those who oppose the regime through armed struggle). He has also
been charged to death for co-operating with Kurdish opposition
parties by so called Sanandaj "revolutionary
court", on 2 August 2008.
It is noticeable that the charge has not yet been officially
issued to his lawyer Mr.Nemat Ahmadi.
During his detention , Mr.Latifi has been subjected to violent
torture and punishments , resulting in internal hemorrhage and
occasional unconsciousness .
The deterioration of his physical condition forced his transfer
to Tohid hospital and later to the public social hospital of
Sanandaj.
Political activist who have been sentenced to death are named as
follow:
Anan HassanPour- Journalist
Hiwa Boutimar – Civil
Rights activist and journalist
Farzad Kamangar- Civil and Human Rights activist
Anvar Hossein Panahi- Civil Rights activist and teacher
Farhad Vakili- Civil Rights activist
Ali Heydarian- Civil Rights activist
Arsalan Oliayee- Civil Rights activist
Habibollah Latifi - Civil
Rights and student activist
Iran, after China, holds the top toll of death
penalties.
8/5/08
The
seven leaders of the Bahaii faith, who have received prison
sentences, are: Fariba Kamal Abadi, Jamol-Aldin Khanjani. Afif
Naiimi, Saieed Rezaii, Behrooz
Tavakoli, Vahid TizFahm, and Mahvash Sabet.
All are being detained in solitary
confinement of the 209 section of the notorious Evin
prison.
Six of the detainees were arrested at
their homes after a night raid by the Intelligence agents on
14 May 2008.
Hassan Haddad , deputy Prosecutor of
Tehran- known as the butcher by most students – announced on
2 August that the detainees are charged for founding an
illegal groups and being in contact with Israel.
Iranian government spokesman Gholam-Hossein
Elham had accused the six members 'of a group working
together "against national interest." And that it
was "an organized establishment linked to foreigners, the
Zionists
in particular."
In reaction to these allegations, Bani
Dugal, the principal representative of the Baha'i
International Community to the United
Nations, called Iran's assertion "utterly
baseless."
"The allegations are not new, and
the Iranian government knows well that they are untrue,"
he had said.
He had categorically denied accusations
implying that the Bahaiis have been involved in attempts to
overthrow the Iranian government, and asserted that "The
Bahai community is not involved in political matters. Their
only 'crime' is their belief in the (Bahai) faith."
In an interview Bani Dugal had stressed:
"The argument for a ploy with Israel is a bald-faced lie
and deception. The Iranian government is taking advantage of
the fact that the Bahai community's governing council is based
in Israel," (August 4 1980)
The Islamic Republic of Iran does not
recognize the followers of the Bahaii faith. This was
particularly obvious during the 1980s open.
8/4/08
As
reported by Iranian
Minorities’ Human Right Organisation (IMHRO), Yaghub
Mehrnahad 28 years old, a Baluchi human Right Activist, was executed
on August 2008 after a secret trial.
He was executed on Monday together with Mr.
Abdolnaser Taheri Sadrieh in the city of Zahedan.
The regime alleged that both of this person were member of a
"terrorist group known as Jondollah leaded by Abdolmalek Rigi
".
IRNA and ISNA news agency including the
website of Tabnak on Monday reported this news through the
announcement by judiciary office in Zahedan .
Mr. Mehrnahad was arrested on January of this year and was sentenced
to death. His court session was held without jury , without his
lawyer and presence of his family.
Alireza Jamshidi the spokesperson for the Islamic Republic judiciary
power announced this news in a press conference.
Mr. Mehrnad's family in a visit to the prison and meeting with their
son noticed the torture and weight lost .
Ebrahim Mehrnahad the brother of Yaghub Mehrnahad was also arrested
on March this year and had spent several months in prison.
For more
background details check the following link: http://iranianminorityshumanright.blogspot.com/2008/02/yaghub-mehrnahad-baluchi-activist-in.html
8/2/08
Hamid
Valayee, human right activist, who has been undergoing
constant torture for at least 13 days in the detention
centre of the Intelligence Ministry of Tabriz, was bailed
out to be treated on 1 August 2008.
According
to witnessed reports of a Human right association in Tabriz,
Mr.Valaiees' teeth have all been broken, his leg smashed,
and he had been unconscious several times during torture.
Because of his deteriorating physical conditions Mr. Valayee
has been transferred to the prison clinic even after he was
returned to prison.
According
to the same sources, Tabriz prosecutor has rejected all
attempts by Mr.Valaee 's attorney to ask for a coroners'
report and an end to torture. Mr.Naghi Mahmoudi , attrorney,
asserted that his clients' file is still in the 4th
prosecutors branch in Tabriz, and "under
Investigation".
Mr.Valayee
ws arrested arbitrarily after he was summoned to the Prosecutors
office on 15 July 2008.
According
to the campaign supporting Abed Tavanche, he has begun a hunger
strike on 31 July , to protest against threats made
against his family by the Intelligence Ministry. Abed has been
sentenced to 8 months in prison.
According to information received from the campaign, officials
of the Intelligence Ministry of Arak city have been exerting
much pressure on his family asking them not to approach the
media and keep silence, and have sent for his sisters' husband
for a hearing at the offices of the Intelligence Ministry this
Tuesday. (In the usual terms this normally implies to
interrogation and even arbitrary arrest).
Mr.Tavanche has in a contact made it clear that he is very
serious and he shall keep to one glass of water each day till
these unjust threats are stopped.
In December 2008 the Intelligence Ministry had arrested at
least 40 students to prevent them from commemorating the
"student day", and Mr.Tavanche was amongst those
arrested. He is affiliated with the movement called
"Students seeking Equality and Freedom".
7/24/08
Mehrdad
Lahrasbi, former student activist who Participated in the 1999
student protest, and released after undergoing 9 years of prison
term, has again been sent to prison.
Mr.Lahrasbi was taken from Evin prison to the revolution court,
to be informed of his "charges', he was later transferred
to solitary confinement of 240 ward of Evin Prison.
His "charges "include; writing anti government slogans
on the wall.
In 1999, Mr.Lahrasbi and five other student activists who had
participated in the student protest had been sentenced to death.
His sentence had been reduced to 15 years. During the period of
his detention, he had been tortured and under went much
psychological pressure:
The coroner at the Prosecutors' office had acknowledged his
physical loss. In return, prison officials had transferred him
to the public ward with ordinary prisons, to increase pressure
and enforce confessions.
Both
Bahare Hedayat and Mohammad Hashemi are student activists of
Office for Student Solidarity (daftare tahkim vahdat) , who
were arrested by the Intelligence Ministry agents on 13 July
2008 and are now in 209 section of the notorious Evin
prison.
According to reports from their families the two victims
have been informed of their so called charges as
"endangering National security", by the first
branch prosecutor, judge Matin Rasekh , on 14 July.
The state news agency "IRNA", quoting judiciary
officials, claimed that Bahare Hedayat and Mihammad Hashemi
, had been alleged to have affiliations with opposition
groups abroad. The Office for Student Solidarity, in defense
of its two members has categorically denied charges made by
government controlled media as an attempt to take revenge on
the student movement.
In the current moth at least 20 students have been illegally
arrested. In Mashad a group of students who had improvised a
committee to examine arbitrary arrests of students, have
themselves been victim to illegal arrests and were arrested.
Five of the detainees have been released so far.
7/15/08
The
Iranian High Court announced the death penalty of a teacher and
Human right activist , Farhad Kamangar , and two political
activists- Farhad Vakili and Ali Heidarian- who are of Kurdish
origins.
Apparently the Head of the Judiciary, Shahroodi has personally
released the order.
The three human right activists had been arrested during a trip to
Tehran in August of 2006.
The 36th so called revolutionary court, had previously sentenced
Mr.Kamangar , after 19 months detention, to death for being a
member of the PKK (Kurdish Workers Party).
Alireza Jamshidi spokesman of the Judiciary had announced on 27
May 2007, that Mr.Kamangar had been charged for membership in a
terrorist organization, and with holding explosives.
After his sentence was delivered, Mr. Kamangar in a letter
smuggled out, revealed that he had been tortured physically and
mentally in the Intelligence Ministry detention centre. He had
been tied to a bed and tortured and threatened to be raped.
Human right activists have already announced that Mr. Kamangar had
been transferred twice to the prison clinic because of severe
conditions resulting from torture.
Prior to this, Khalil Bahramian, and Mr. Kamangars' attorney had
announced that they believe Mr.Kamangars' case is only a result of
prejudice on Kurdish nationalists. He had rejected all accusations
against his client.
Mr. Khalil Bahramian had also declared that his client had no
knowledge whatsoever of explosives mentioned to have been found in
his car. He had asserted that the aforementioned explosives had
been implanted in his car in Tehran.
Teachers of Kamyaran province had collected a petition in support
of the release of their colleague Farzad Kamangar. In their
petition they had born witness to the fact that Mr.Kamangar had
always been a law abiding citizen, and demanded the death sentence
be annulled.
Farzad Kamangar has been a teacher in the Kamyaran province art
college in Kurdistan. He was a member of the teachers'
association, the environmentalists of Asak (meaning deer) . He was
also a known writer in the monthly "Royan" of the
Ministry of Education.
7/12/08
Mahboobeh
Karami , a member of the 1 million petition project, which
denounced sexual apartheid under the current regime in Iran, n a
telephone call to her family, announced that she and 9 other
women inmates have begun a hunger strike.
The reasons for their hunger
strike was explained to be : deprivation of food, incommunicado
and reluctance to be allowed any contact to protest their
deteriorating conditions in their prison cells, and also the
fact that no legal reason for their detention had been provided.
The ten women age between 17 to
70 years, have not been allowed a meeting with the prosecutor to
enquire the reasons of their detention.
According to the Iranian
Women's Movement site, Mr. Babaii, attorney to Ms.Karami
approached the so called revolutionary court on July 6, to
obtain given legal reasons for her detention, but in vain.
Mrs. Sedighe Masaebi, Mahboobeh
Karamis' mother, 63 years old, has suffered deteriorating
strokes because of her daughters' detention. In every approach
for clarifications from the so called officials of the courts,
she has been humiliated and has not been directed as to the
reasons for her daughters' detention.
Ms. Karami , was harassed ,
beaten and arrested on 13 June , as she was travelling in a
public bus, by "plain clothed agents" of the
government.(A term used for trained special forces recruited by
the Intelligence Ministry).
This bus was apparently passing
along the gathered protest against deteriorating economic
situation and poverty, in which around a 1000 people had
participated. Practically all the passengers of the bus were
beaten up. It is reported that at least 200 participants had
been arrested that day by the security agents.
Vida
Dehganian, 30, a civil right activist, who was arrested on 13
June in front of the Melat park in a congregation, has been
transferred to Evin prison.
Friends of Ms. Deghan , have said that she was transferred to
the section after she had invoked a clash with security guards
in the "women's section" of Evin prison on 23 June.
The new section is under the Intelligence Ministry jurisdiction
and it seems this move was aimed to put more pressure on Ms.
Dehganian .
Vida Dehganian is a member of the Pan Iranian opposition party,
which is considered illegal in Iran.
After the protest demonstration of people in Tehran on 13 June,
which was against inflation and corruption of government
Authorities, the Judiciary's spokesman, announced that 200
people had been arrested in that demonstration .
On 13 June at least 230 people were arrested in Mashad and their
where-abouts is not clear. At least 5 students of Ferdowsi
University of Mahshad had been amongst those arrested.
Amnesty International has released an appeal, expressing concern
over the well being of Ms. Mahboobe Karami , an activist of the
1 million petition who had been in the same parkas those
protesting and as consequence had been arrested.
6/24/08
Mohammad
Sedigh Kaboodvand , a journalist , has been sentenced to 11
years imprisonment, by the 5th Branch of the so called
revolution Court , on charges of founding an organization to
promote Human Rights.
"The lawyers to this case are
protesting to the surprising sentence "said Mrs. Nasrin
Sotudeh who is one of the attorneys to the case.
Mrs. Sotudeh insists, sentencing her
client to 11 years imprisonment only for printing his
thoughts, is in violation of the International Covenant of
civil and political rights and Human rights.
Mr.Kaboodvand was called to the Court
on 1 July 2007 in Tehran and was immediately arrested. He
has been in prison since. He has been ill during this period
and has suffered a stroke.
Prior to this Mr.Kaboodvand had been
imprisoned for 6 months because of printing an article in
the Payam newspaper .
6/20/08
Mohammad Sedigh Kaboodvand , a journalist , has been
sentenced to 11 years imprisonment, by the 5th Branch of the so
called revolution Court , on charges of founding an organization to
promote Human Rights.
"The lawyers to this case are protesting to the
surprising sentence "said Mrs. Nasrin Sotudeh who is one of the
attorneys to the case.
Mrs. Sotudeh insists, sentencing her client to 11
years imprisonment only for printing his thoughts, is in violation
of the International Covenant of civil and political rights and
Human rights.
Mr.Kaboodvand was called to the Court on 1 July 2007
in
Tehran
and was immediately arrested. He has been in prison since. He has
been ill during this period and has suffered a stroke.
Prior to this Mr.Kaboodvand had been imprisoned for 6
months because of printing an article in the Payam newspaper .
6/20/08
Houd Yazerlou , 21, has been arrested after visiting
his aunt in the Mojahedin Camp (called Ashraf in
Iraq
) after returning to
Iran
.
Numerous activists in
Iran
have released a statement protesting to Yazerlous' arbitrary arrest
on 24 May 2008.
The statement reiterates concern over Mr.Yazerlous well being,
saying "despite Mr.Majid Zarghamis' claim (prosecutor of the
2nd Security Branch of the so called revolutionary courts) that
Mr.Yazerlou is in 209 Evin prison, there is no news of his real
where-a bouts since his family's request to see him has continuously
been refused and turned down.
Houd Yazerlou and his mother Nazila Dashti had visited
Iraq
3 months ago to meet his aunt, who is a member of the People's
Mojahedin organization of
Iran
(PMOI/MEK) in Ashraf Camp.
According to Houd's Mother, Mrs. Dashti, they were both arrested
after return. Mrs Dashti spent 21 days in prison, while her son was
16 days in prison. They were bailed out, each paying 200 Million and
100 million Tomans .
Nazilla Dashti adds that on 24 May, they were called informally
through the person who had provided their bail to the Court for
further inquiry, but Houd Yazerlou was arrested and taken way since.
Mrs. Dashti explained her ordeal while under
"investigation":
"On our entering the building, we were harassed and humiliated
and degraded continuously by the person who was to question us. He
prevented my son from sitting down and kept him standing all
through. He asked him: Are you in touch with other families of the
Monafeghin? ( A term used to deface the Mojahedin in public by the
Government authorities)
My child, who is not familiar with these terms and their intentions,
simply answered "No sir, I know no Monafeghin".
The person who had by this time become extremely angry replied
"What then?" , and my son replied : " They are
Mojahedin ". This was enough to blow the top off that person.
While throwing the paper and pen to my son, he said in a threatening
tone "I will show you what I Mean …"
Nazila Dashti says Houd Yazerlou was sent to prison immediately
after his so called interview and nothing has been heard so far of
his where-abouts.
Nazilla Dashti and her husband Hani Yazerlou are former political
prisoners and activists. Fariba and houd , sister and brother to
Mrs.Dashti are amongst the victims of the great massacre of the
political prisoners in 1988.
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