Category: Freedom of Expression

An Instagram Blogger Arrested in Qazvin and His Account Blocked

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Maryam Ghalibaf, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Vahid Nemati

On June 28, 2024, Vahid Nemati, an Instagram blogger, was summoned and arrested by security forces in Qazvin for allegedly “publishing criminal content.”

Nemati, known for creating humorous videos in response to current events, was detained by a security agency in Qazvin. The content on his Instagram and Facebook pages, which had about 90,000 followers, was deleted, and an image stating “By order of the honorable judicial authority, this page has been blocked due to the publication of criminal content” was posted.

Recently, Nemati released a video in which he criticized the remarks of Maryam Ghalibaf, daughter of Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and a candidate in the 2024 presidential election in Iran, using humorous rap music. This video went viral, being viewed and shared millions of times on social media.

As of the time of this report, no information is available about Nemati’s whereabouts or the charges against him.

Women’s Rights Advocate Atefeh Rangriz Arrested

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News, Women
Atefeh Rangriz, Damghan, HRANA, Semnan, Shahroud

Atefeh Rangriz, a women’s rights activist, was arrested on Saturday, June 29th, after a court session addressing her charges and was transferred to Shahrud Prison.

A source close to the family of this women’s rights activist confirmed the news to HRANA, saying: “Ms. Rangriz was arrested after a court session addressing her charges in Branch 1 of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in Damghan and was transferred to Shahrud Prison.” She had recently been summoned to the mentioned branch to defend herself against charges of “forming a group aiming to disrupt national security,” “propaganda against the regime,” and “disseminating falsehoods on the Internet to disturb public opinion.”

Rangriz’s initial arrest dates back to September 10, 2023, when she was arrested by security forces in Damghan and transferred to The Ministry of Intelligence’s detention facility in Semnan. After completing the interrogation process, she was moved to Shahrud Prison. She was finally released on bail from Shahrud Prison on October 21, 2023.

Rangriz has previously been arrested and sentenced due to her activities.

Astara: Several Citizens Arrested for their Reaction to the Death of Ebrahim Raisi

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Astara, Ebrahim Raisi, Gilan province

The governor of Astara, Gilan Province, announced the arrest of several citizens in the city following their reaction to the death of Ebrahim Raisi, according to Mehr news agency.

The governor claimed, “A video clip was published on social media showing people in the border town of Bandar Astara celebrating the helicopter crash of Ebrahim Raisi, which hurt the feelings of the Islamic nation, families of martyrs, and people loyal to the Islamic government in this city.”

Mohammad Reza Shahabzadeh claimed that “these individuals also committed other offenses, such as burning banners of the late President, recording footage, and sharing it on dissident networks with whom they had financial transactions and interactions.”

The report does not disclose the identity, number, or whereabouts of the detained citizens.

The incident occurred on the afternoon of Sunday, May 19th, when a helicopter transporting President Raisi, along with several officials including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, crashed in the Dizmar forest between Varzaqan and Jolfa. Official media confirmed the deaths of Raisi and his companions the following morning after the crash site and wreckage were located. Numerous citizens have since been arrested or subjected to legal proceedings for expressing their opinions on the incident, which the authorities have deemed inappropriate.

Matin Hasani Sentenced to Imprisonment on Political Charges

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Bukan, Matin Hasani, متین حسنی

Matin Hasani, one of the injured individuals from the November 2019 protests, has been sentenced to thirty-one months in prison by Branch 101 of the Criminal Court of Bukan, as reported by Kurdpa.

The court session for addressing the charges against Hasani was held on May 16, 2024. He was charged with “inciting people to engage in warfare with the intent to disrupt national security” and “propaganda against the regime.”

Hasani was arrested by security forces on January 23, 2024, at his parent’s residence without a judicial warrant and was released from Bukan prison on February 22 of the same year after posting bail.

Matin Hasani, at the age of nineteen, lost vision in one eye due to a bullet shot during the nationwide protests of November 2019 in Bukan, West Azerbaijan province.

Political Prisoner Mehdi Sabeti Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Alborz province, Mehdi Sabeti, Meshkin Dasht, مهدی ثابتی

Mehdi Sabeti, a political prisoner held in the Central Prison of Karaj, has been sentenced to three years in prison by the Revolutionary Court of Karaj.

According to a verdict recently issued by Branch 4 of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj and delivered to Mr. Sabeti on Saturday, June 22, he has been sentenced to two years in prison for “insulting the Supreme Leader” and one year in prison for “propaganda against the regime.”

Sabeti was arrested by agents of the IRGC Intelligence in Meshkin Dasht, Alborz province, on September 17, 2023. He was subsequently transferred to the Central Prison of Karaj.

Previously, a source close to the family of this political detainee told HRANA: “A few days after his arrest, Sabeti was also charged with blasphemy and disseminating falsehoods during his interrogation.”

Sabeti, aged around 34, resides in Fardis County, Alborz province.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Now is definitely not the time to stop reading!

Three Workers’ Rights Activists Sentenced to a Total of Six Years in Prison

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, Labor and Guilds, News
Mohammad Iran-Nejad, Morteza Seydi, Nasrollah Amirloo

Mohammad Iran-Nejad, Nasrollah Amirloo, and Morteza Seydi, labor activists, were each sentenced to two years in prison by the Revolutionary Court of Shahriar.

According to a verdict recently issued by branch 2 of the Revolutionary Court of Shahriar and delivered to these workers’ rights advocates on June 22, they were each sentenced to two years in prison for “forming a group under the title of a labor union with the intent to disrupt national security.” The court session to address these charges was held on May 26th of the previous year in the aforementioned branch.

Iran-Nejad, Amirloo, and Seydi, along with several other labor activists, were arrested by security forces on April 15, 2022. Amirloo and Seydi were released on bail on May 2 and May 9 of the same year, respectively, and Iran-Nejad was released after about a month.

Mohammad Iran-Nejad was sent to Evin Prison on June 26, 2022, to serve his sentence of two years and nine months for another case. Following the fire incident in Evil Prison on October 15, 2022, he and several other prisoners were transferred to Rajai Shahr Prison. He was released from this prison in February-March 2024.

Journalist Hadi Kasaie Zadeh Arrested

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Evin Prison, Hadi Kasaie-Zadeh, Tehran, هادی کسایی زاده

Hadi Kasaie Zadeh, a journalist, has been arrested by security forces and transferred to an unknown location, as reported by Didban Iran.

The report does not specify the security institution responsible for Kasaie Zadeh’s arrest, the place of detention, or the charges against this journalist.

In May of this year, Kasaie Zadeh was charged with “publishing details about the death of Nika Shakarami.” at the Evin Prosecutor’s Office in Tehran.

Additionally, in another case, this journalist was sentenced to three months in prison by Branch 2 of the Tehran Criminal Court for the charge of “disseminating false information.” The sentence has been suspended for two years. According to information received by HRANA, this conviction was related to the publication of material concerning the judicial case of Reza Saghafi, the former head of the Gilan Department of Culture and Islamic Guidance.

Hadi Kasaie Zadeh Mahabadi has a history of judicial confrontations due to his activities as a journalist.

In 2023, the Department of Statistics and Publications of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) documented 2,380 cases in which citizens, including journalists and civil rights activists, faced legal and security consequences for exercising their freedom of expression and thought. These incidents resulted in the arrest of 3,130 individuals.

Journalist Vahid Ashtari Starts Serving 14-Month Sentence

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
Babol, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Vahid Ashtari, وحید اشتری

On Thursday, June 20, Vahid Ashtari, a journalist, was arrested and transferred to prison to serve his fourteen-month sentence, according to Mizan, the judiciary’s news agency.

Vahid Ashtari was initially sentenced to 24 months in prison, which was later reduced to 14 months by the Court of Appeals. This case was referred to another branch in the Court of Appeals of Tehran Province in November-December 2023 following the Supreme Court’s order for retrial. However, the judges of that branch rejected the retrial and confirmed the verdict issued by the Tehran Court of Appeals.

Mizan reported that this conviction is related to a case initiated after Mr. Ashtari reported the assault against him by a soldier in Babol, Mazandaran province.

This journalist has faced several other charges and convictions due to his activities as a journalist. He is also known for exposing the trip of Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf’s family, the current Speaker of the Parliament of Iran, to Turkey, leading to a scandal known as the “baby layette Gate” for Ghalibaf.

29 Arrested in Shirvan County for Alleged Satanism

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News
North Khorasan province, satanism, Shirvan

The chief police of  North Khorasan province announced the arrest of twenty-nine citizens in Shirvan County, in accusation of “Satanism” and possession of alcoholic beverages and drugs, as reported by IRNA.

The Police official accused these individuals of Satan worship and said their arrest occurred while they were gathered in a villa.

Saeed Motahhari-Zadeh further claimed: “A quantity of alcoholic beverages, Satanic paraphernalia, and various hallucinogenic substances were discovered at the location of these individuals.” Without referring to the identities of these individuals, he stated that most of these citizens were non-locals.

The report does not mention the location where these individuals are being held.

This incident adds to ongoing criticisms of Iran’s regime for its intrusive practices into the private lives of its citizens and violations of privacy rights.

Student Ehsan Faridi Arrested and Jailed in Tabriz Prison

Posted on by . .
Freedom of Expression, News, Other
Ehsan Faridi, Tabriz

Ehsan Faridi, a student at Tabriz University, was arrested and transferred to Tabriz prison on Tuesday, June 18th, after being summoned to the General and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in this city.

Based on reports received by HRANA, after appearing at this judicial institution, Faridi was arrested and transferred to the city’s prison. As of now, the charges against him remain unknown.

Ehsan Faridi is a 21-year-old student of Manufacturing Engineering at Tabriz Technical College. He was previously arrested on March 9th, 2023, and transferred to Tabriz prison. He was eventually released on bail on March 19th of the same year.