Tag: Amin-Akbari

Nine Followers of the “Yamani” Movement Remain in Detention at Vakilabad Prison, Mashhad

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News, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Alireza Salim Kaviani, Amin-Akbari, Emad Eftetahi, Ghasem Hatami, Mashhad, Mohammad Hossein Nazarnajad, Mohammad Kazem Fathi, Sajjad Rezvan, Seyed Yahya Tarrahomi, Yamani

HRANA – Over a month after their arrests, nine followers of the “Yamani” religious movement remain in pre-trial detention at Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad. The detainees include Emad Eftetahi, Amin Akbari, Seyed Yahya Tarrahomi, Ghasem Hatami, Alireza Salim Kaviani, Sajjad Rezvan, Mohammad Kazem Fathi, Mohammad Hossein Nazarnajad, and one unidentified individual.

They were among 19 “Yamani” adherents detained in Mashhad. According to relatives, the arrests were made without official warrants and in violation of legal procedures.

In Iran, individuals are frequently detained for espousing spiritual or messianic beliefs, especially those claiming a connection to the Shi’a Mahdi. The “Yamani” movement, led by Ahmad al-Hasan Yamani, centers its teachings on Mahdism.

Iran’s security agencies—particularly the Ministry of Intelligence—operate dedicated units to suppress religious, spiritual, and ideological groups that fall outside the bounds of the state-sanctioned doctrine.

Ongoing Detention of 19 “Yamani” Followers in Mashhad’s Vakilabad Prison

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News, Prisoners, Religious Minorities
Alireza Salim Kaviani, Amin-Akbari, Amir Zohan, Amir Zorami, Emad Eftetahi, Ghasem Hatami, Hamed Nejad-Nik, HRANA, IRGC forces, Mashhad, Mohammad Hossein Nazarnajhad, Mohammad Kazem Fathi, Mostafa Tavana, Reza Ghiasi, Sajjad Rezvan, Seyed Ali Hosseini, Seyed Yahya Tarrahomi, Vakilabad prison, Yamani

HRANA News Agency – Nineteen individuals affiliated with the “Yamani” religious movement, remain in legal limbo in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, one week after their arrest.

These detainees are Amir Zorami, Amin Akbari, Reza Ghiasi, Amir Zohan, Seyed Yahya Tarrahomi, Hamed Nejad-Nik, Emad Eftetahi, Alireza Salim Kaviani, Ghasem Hatami, Seyed Ali Hosseini, Sajjad Rezvan, Mohammad Hossein Nazarnajhad, Mostafa Tavana, Mohammad Kazem Fathi, and five others.

Based on information received by HRANA, these individuals were arrested by IRGC forces while attending a religious gathering.

As of the time of this report, no information has been released regarding the charges brought against these citizens.

Every year in Iran, individuals are arrested merely for claiming a connection to the Shi’a messianic figure, the Hidden Imam. The “Yemeni” movement, led by Ahmad al-Hasan Yamani, operates based on messianic claims related to Mahdism.

Iran’s security apparatus—particularly the Ministry of Intelligence—maintains dedicated divisions tasked with confronting religions, spiritual groups, and ideological-religious communities that do not align with the state’s official ideology.

Family of US Citizen Missing in Iran Seeks Answers

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Afsar, Afsar Amin-Akbari, Akbari, Amin-Akbari, Amir-abdollahian, Ashraf Amin-Akbari, dual nationals, Hossein amir-Abdollahian, INTERPOL, US Citizen

Three years after her disappearance, the family of Iranian-American dual citizen Ashraf Amin-Akbari continues to seek answers.

Ashraf Amin-Akbari, 63, is an Iranian-American-Canadian citizen born in Iran. Amin-Akbari, who resided in Las Vegas, Nevada, boarded a flight to Tehran to visit her family in July of 2018, and has been missing since August 1, 2018. The trip was meant to be a 3-week visit to a family home in Tehran.

Despite the passage of more than 3 years and her family’s persistent communications with US, Canadian, and Iranian officials, her whereabouts remain unknown. Amin-Akbari is currently listed on INTERPOL’s yellow notice list, a global police alert for missing persons.

In an interview with HRANA, Afsar Amin-Akbari, Ashraf’s sister, expressed concern regarding the condition of her 63-year-old sister.

“My sister had gone to Iran for a three-week trip to visit family,” she said. “Two weeks into her trip, on August 1, 2018, she disappeared. She has not been heard from since. Is it possible for a person to be lost in a country for this period and not be heard from? I follow up with the Iranian police and Agahi Shapoor (a specialist police department) every week and they say they have no information. I am told, ‘is your sister the only one missing in Iran?’”

Ms. Akbari is also concerned about the Iranian government’s history of arresting dual nationals.

“We have searched all hospitals, morgues, and cemeteries,” she told HRANA. “My sister has no history of civic activity, the only way left we think she may be is in a security detention center or prison. My sister is sick, suffering from kidney failure, she even quit her job due to illness. She needs her own medicine, and I do not know if she has access to her medicine wherever she is.”

On Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, announced, “Iran’s Foreign Ministry is to launch a program under which it claims to guarantee that dual nationals traveling to the country will not face detention or any other legal problem.”

In light of the recent remarks, HRA Senior Advocacy Coordinator Skylar Thompson calls on Amir-Abdollahian to answer for the situation of Amini Akbari and other dual nationals that are seemingly being held as political bargaining chips.

Thompson added, “The claim of such a guarantee is remarkably insensitive to the families of disappeared and detained dual nationals inside of Iran, including Ms. Amin-Akbari.”

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