HRANA News Agency – Early Tuesday morning, on September 13, 2011, Kosha Parsa Motlagh was hanged in public.The hanging took place on Darya Blvd., past Imam Sadegh University crossing near the location where Kosha Motlagh had killed and stabbed his classmate, Mahsa, on July 6, 2011.Since the crime occurred on Tehran’s Modiriat Bridge, this murder is often referred to as “Modiriat Bridge Murder.”
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has released a few pictures of this public hanging.
HRANA News Agency – On Sunday afternoon, July 24, 2011, Kurdish political prisoner Nasar Khanizadeh died while being treated for a digestive illness in Urmia Central Prison, West Azerbaijan Province.
According to a report by Murkrain News Agency, Nasar Khanizadeh was recently transferred from Bokan Prison to Urmia for medical reasons.He suffered from some sort of gastrointestinaldisease and at the time of his death, was under medical care in Urmia prison hospital.
Nasar Khanizadeh was sentenced to 18 months in prison by the Revolutionary Court on charges of being associated and cooperating with opposition parties.
HRANA- Repressive measures against Bahai citizens in Iran have resulted in the arrest of one individual in Abadan and the destruction of a Bahai cemetery in Kerman.
HRANA has learned that on July 17, 2010 agents from the Ministry of Intelligence raided the home of Hedayatollah Rezai a Bahai citizen from Abadan and arrested him after searching his home.
Continue reading “Continued Persecution of Bahai Citizens in Iran”
HRANA News Agency – The defense attorney for a young man sentenced to death has announced that his client will be executed early tomorrow morning.Kosha is a university student who has been convicted of murdering his classmate, Mahsa, on July 6, 2011 when she left Allameh Tabatabai University.Since the crime occurred on Tehran’s Modiriat Bridge, this murder is often referred to as “Modiriat Bridge Murder.”
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Mr. Aghasi, Kosha’s defense attorney, said, “On Monday morning, when I went to the Criminal Court in Tehran, the head of the Enforcement Unit tasked to carry out verdicts informed me that the retribution sentence against my client would be performed early tomorrow morning.”
In answer to the question whether Kosha and his family are aware of what will happen tomorrow, Mr. Aghasi answered, “Surely Kosha will know because prison officials must perform the necessary tasks to prepare a prisoner for execution.However, as far as the family is concerned, I prefer not to be the one who carries the bad news to them.”
HRANA News Agency – In the recent weeks, an outbreak of Cholera has been reported in Ghezel Hesar, Rajai-Shahr and Pardis prisons.
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the Ghezel Hesar prison hospital has diagnosed three cases of Cholera amongst the prisoners.Additionally, one prisoner in Rajai-Shahr Prison and another one in Pardis Prison have tested positive for Cholera.
Given the fact that the Cholera infection is caused by a bacterial toxin in contaminated food and water, and the drinking water is reported to be unsanitary especially in Ghezel Hesar and Rajai-Shahr prisons, an outbreak of Cholera in Tehran and Karaj’s prisons are highly probable.
Additionally, several times every week, debris and dirt are reported to be present in Rajai-Shahr Prison’s drinking water.Although prisoners have voiced their concerns and objected to this situation, nothing has been done so far to address the problem.
HRANA- Child labor activist and Bahai citizen from Tehran Afshin Heyratian has been in detention since his arrest on June 3, 2010.
According to the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, Heyratian was arrested in a park near his home. Security forces then entered his home without a warrant. Afshin Heyratian was active in a group working to better the plight of child laborers. It is believed that several other group members have been arrested.
Continue reading “Continued Detention of Child Labor Activist and Bahai Citizen Afshin Heyratian”
HRANA News Agency – This morning, July 19, 2011, three prisoners were hanged publicly in Kermanshah’s Azadi Square on charges of kidnapping and adultery.These prisoners identified by their first names were Milad Q. (son of Shirali), Javad A. (son of Sultan) and Javad A. (son of Habib). Although the prisoners’ exact age was not released, Iranian authorities indicated that the prisoners’ average age was 21 years and two months.
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), on May 14, 2011 the Criminal Court of Western Eslamabad issued the death sentence, and on June 21, 2011, the Iranian Supreme Court, Branch 32, upheld this verdict.Finally, the executions occurred this morning.The entire legal process from the trial to the appeal and eventually the execution took two months and five days.
HRANA has released the video report of the hanging on YouTube.
HRANA News Agency – In an effort to increase pressure on political prisoners, since Sunday, July 17, 2011, outside recreation time has been cancelled in Rajai-Shahr Prison.
According to a report by Jaras News, prison officials have not allowed political prisoners to go to the prison yard for fresh air since yesterday.In Rajai-Shahr Prison, political prisoners were previously given four hours every day for outside recreation contrary to the Department of Corrections’ regulations giving inmates the right to have access to fresh air all day.
In response to this decision, political prisoners refused to participate in the daily roll call.It has also been reported that living conditions inside Rajai-Shahr Prison are very poor.Political prisoners suffer from poor nutrition and have no access to the prison telephone.
HRANA- A number of followers of the Christian faith in Mashad were arrested by state security and intelligence forces. There is no word on the fate of two of those arrested.
HRANA has learned that on Thursday July 8, 2010 a group of fifteen Iranian Christians were arrested by state security and intelligence forces in Mashad as they were departing for a meeting with Christians from the city of Bojnourd.
HRANA News Agency – Prison officials have refused to provide medical care for Zanyar Moradi, a Kurdish political prisoner sentenced to death on charges of killing the Friday Prayer Imam in the city of Marivan, Kurdistan Province.
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Zanyar Moradi is suffering from inguinal hernia and has requested medical care several times.However, prison officials have ignored his needs thus far.
Inguinal hernias are bulges in the scrotum or thigh.Zanyar Moradi also suffers from testicular pain caused by severe physical torture.
Zanyar Moradi and Laqman Moradi are two Kurdish prisoners charged with the assassination of the Friday Prayer Imam in the city of Marivan.While behind bars in Rajai-Shahr Prison, these two political prisoners have denied the charges and written a letter to declare their innocence.
