aras amiri Archives

HRA Highlights Sixty-Nine Dual and Foreign Nationals Detained by Iran From 2003 to Present

Posted on February 22, 2022March 17, 2022 by main

Abbas Adalat, Abdolrasoul Dori Esfahani, Afarin Nisari, Afshin Shafei, Ahmad Reza Jalali, Akbar Lakestani, Amir Mirza Hekmati, Anousheh Ashury, aras amiri, Australian, Bahareh Amidi, Baqer Namazi, Benjamin Breyer, Canadian Residence, Chinese-American, Clotilde Rees, Croatian-Swedish, Death in prison, Disappeared, Donald Klein, Emad Sharghi, Fariba Adelkhah, Farzad Khosravi Rudsari, French, French Residence, German-American, Habib Asiud, Haleh Esfandiari, Hamid Ghasemi Shal, Hassan Rastegari Majd, Homa Hodfar, Hossein Derakhshan, Iranian - British, Iranian - English, Iranian - Swedish, Iranian-American, Iranian-Canadian, Iranian-Dutch, Iranian-French, Iranian-German, Iranian-Norwegian, Israel, Jamshid Sharmahd, Jason Rezaian, Josh Fattal, Kamil Ahmadi, Kamran Ghaderi, Karen Vafadari, Kavous SeyeD-eMAMI, Kian Tajbakhsh, Kylie Moore-Gilbert, Lebanese-American, Masoud Karami, Matthew Troitic, Maziar Bahari, Meymant Hosseini Chavoshi, Michael White, Morad Tahabaz, Mostafa Azizi, Murder in prison, Nahid Taghavi, Nazanin Zaghari Ratklif, Neli Erin, Nizar Zaka, Nusratullah Khosravi Rudsari, Reza Eslami, Reza Shahini, Robert Levinson, Robin Shahini, Roxana Saberi, Roya Saberi Nejad Nobakht, Ruhollah Zam, Saeed Abedini, Saeed Malekpour, Sania Bobnehovich, Sara Shourd, Shin Bauer, Siamak Namazi, Slovakia, Spy, Stephanie Larbieh, Tavakoli, Turkish citizen, Yulia Yuzik, Zahra Kazemi, Zi Yu Wang

HRANA – HRA has compiled a list of sixty-nine dual and foreign nationals detained by Iran since 2003. The list illustrates a deeply flawed judiciary plagued with the ongoing use of arbitrary detention fueled by an extraordinary lack of due process. It is noteworthy that in recent years a number of these arrests have been made by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). It is overwhelmingly clear that Iran continues to use dual and foreign nationals as political bargaining chips, often charging individuals in connection with espionage and citing national security concerns—with an alarming lack of evidence. HRA has documented extensive evidence of unfair trials, often conducted in a language the accused does not understand, with the denial of legal counsel, disproportionate sentencing, prolonged solitary confinement, and interrogations marred with torture leading to forced and sometimes televised confessions. The list goes on. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has commented on Iran’s trend of detaining dual nationals confirming that a number of those detained were targeted based on their “nationality or social origin”.

The detention of dual and foreign nationals is seemingly targeted and systematic and it must be widely condemned. Iran cannot be allowed to use human beings as players in its political chessboard. Despite the foreign ministries’ November 2021 guarantee vowing the safety of dual nationals traveling to Iran, the continued practice and failure to release those currently detained sends a starkly opposite message to Iranians that enjoy dual nationality. A message that it is not safe to return to Iran without a well-founded fear of detention. There is no secret that Iran views dual nationals in this way. The case of Nazanin Zarcari Radcliffe is an unfortunate example of just how serious Iran takes the game. They view Nazanin as ransom for a four-hundred million pound debt owed by the United Kingdom daring back to a 1979 arms deal. It has become clear that Nazanin’s freedom hinges on the payment of said funds. She is not alone. There must be sustained international pressure to release Nazanin and all dual and foreign nationals currently detained by Iran. It’s a dangerous game when politics become more important than the very lives politicians were elected to serve.

In a letter written from prison, currently detained dual national, Siamak Namazi said Iran’s continued use of hostage diplomacy was like “sprinkl[ing] salt on the wound of distrust.” This is surely a shared sentiment in numerous diplomatic circles attempting to tackle the issue.

The following list documents sixty-nine dual and foreign nationals detained by Iran from 2003 to the present day. A number of those detained were released prior to the completion of their sentence–illustrating the arbitrariness of the practice. Some were never fortunate enough to return home and ultimately faced execution at the hands of their abductors. While several have been released a number still await a strategic move on the chessboard that has, unfortunately, become their reality. American, British, and Canadian citizens account for the highest number of detentions among dual nationals–the highest number of detentions occurring in 2016. It is worth noting that the actual number of detentions may be higher than reported. Dual national detentions significantly outnumber that of foreign nationals reaffirming the widespread distrust in Iran’s commitment to the safety of dual nationals wishing to “return home”.

(*) denotes the individual remains imprisoned in Iran or otherwise has been denied the ability to return home.

1. Zahra “Ziba” Kazemi-Ahmadabadi

Date of Arrest: June 24, 2003
Date of Release: Killed by Iranian officials following her arrest
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Photographing restricted areas
Conviction: N/A

2. Stephane Lherbier

Date of Arrest: November 6, 2005
Date of Release: January 2007
Nationality: French
Charges: Unknown
Conviction:Unknown

3. Donald Klein

Date of Arrest: November 6, 2005
Date of Release: January, 2007
Nationality: German
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

4. Robert Alan Levinson

Date of Arrest: March 2007
Date of Release: Disappeared on March 9, 2007 on Kish Island, Iran
Nationality: American
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

5. Haleh Esfandiari

Date of Arrest: May 8, 2007
Date of Release: August 21, 2007
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Acting against national security and acting to overthrow the regime
Conviction: Unknown

6. Hamid Ghasemi Shal

Date of Arrest: 2008
Date of Release: October 2013
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Espionage. In retrial, the charge was changed to assembly and collusion against national security
Conviction: Initially sentenced to death. Later, the verdict was reduced to 5 years imprisonment

7. Saeed Malekpour

Date of Arrest: October 2008
Date of Release: Released from prison before the end of his sentence
Nationality: Iranian-Resident of Canada
Charges: Cybercrime (Pornography)
Conviction: Life imprisonment

8. Hossein Derakhshan

Date of Arrest: November 1, 2008
Date of Release: November 19, 2015
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Collaboration with hostile countries, propaganda against the regime, advocating for anti-regime groups, blasphemy, setting up and directing websites with obscene content.
Conviction: 19 years and 6 months imprisonment, five year prohibition from membership and activity on social media

9. Roxana Saberi

Date of Arrest: January 31, 2009
Date of Release: May 11, 2009
Nationality: American
Charges: Espionage and gathering confidential and classified documents
Conviction: 2 years suspended imprisonment

10. Maziar Bahari

Date of Arrest: June 1, 2009
Date of Release: October 13, 2009
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Assembly and collusion to act against national security, gathering and holding confidential and classified documents, propaganda against the regime, offensive statements against the Supreme Leader of Iran and the President, disturbing public order
Conviction: 13 years and six month imprisonment and 74 lashes

* 11. Fariba Adelkhah

Date of arrest: June 6, 2009
Date of release: Unknown
Citizenship: Iranian-French
Charges: Propaganda against the regime and collusion against national security
Sentence: 6 years and 6 months imprisonment

12. Clotilde Reiss

Date of Arrest: July 1, 2009
Date of Release: August 2009
Nationality: French
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 5 years imprisonment, later changed to a fine when she left Iran on May 16, 2016

13. Kian Tajbakhsh

Date of Arrest: July 2009
Date of Release: March 13, 2010
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: 5 years imprisonment

14. Sarah Shourd

Date of Arrest: July 30, 2009
Date of Release: September 14, 2010
Nationality: American
Charges: Illegally entering the country and espionage
Conviction: Released on bail. She left Iran after her release.

15. Vahik Abramian

Date of Arrest: February 20, 2010
Date of Release: March 2011
Nationality: Iranian-Dutch
Charges: Preaching Christian beliefs
Conviction: One year in prison. He returned to the Netherlands after release.

16. Shane Bauer

Date of Arrest: September 14, 2010
Date of Release: December 27, 2011
Nationality: American
Charges: Illegally entering the country and espionage
Conviction: 8 years imprisonment

17. Josh Fattal

Date of Arrest: September 14, 2010
Date of Release: December 27, 2011
Nationality: American
Charges: Illegally entering the country and espionage
Conviction: 8 years imprisonment

18. Amir Mirza Hekmati

Date of Arrest: December 7, 2011
Date of Release: January 2016
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Initially sentenced to death, later reduced to 10 years imprisonment. He was released through a prisoner swap with the U.S. Government

19. Masoud Karami

Date of Arrest: February 14, 2012
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Iranian-Norwegian
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

20. Saeed Abedini

Date of Arrest: September 2012
Date of Release: Mid-January 2016
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Holding underground church services with the purpose of acting against national security
Conviction: 8 years in prison

21. Afshin Shafei

Date of Arrest: December 16, 2012
Date of Release: January 2013
Nationality: Iranian-Norwegian
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Released on bail and left the country

22. Roya Saberi Nejad Nikbakht

Date of Arrest: September 28, 2013
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: Blasphemy and offensive statements against the heads of three branches of government.
Conviction: 4 years imprisonment

23-30. Seven Unidentified Slovak Citizens

Date of Arrest: July 2013
Date of Release: September 2013
Nationality: Slovak
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Unknown

31. Jason Rezaian

Date of Arrest: July 22, 2014
Date of Release: January 2016
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Espionage and acting against national security
Conviction: Released though a prisoner swap. In return, the U.S. government released three Iranian prisoners.

* 32. Hasan Rastegari Majd

Date of Arrest: October 27, 2014
Date of Release: Imprisoned in Urmia Prison
Nationality: Iranian-Turkish
Charges: In the first case, “propaganda against the regime through collaboration with an anti-regime group”. In the second case, “offensive statements and propaganda against the regime”. In the third case, “causing unrest in prison and clashing with prison guards”.
Conviction: 15 years imprisonment and revocation of Iranian citizenship for his first case. 2 years imprisonment for the second case and one year for the third.

33. Nosratollah (Farzad) Khosravi-Roodsari

Date of Arrest: 2014
Date of Release: January, 2016
Nationality: Iranian- American
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Released through a prisoner swap with the U.S. Government.

34. Mostafa Azizi

Date of Arrest: February 1, 2015
Date of Release: April, 2016
Nationality: Iranian-Resident of Canada
Charges: Assembly and collusion against national security, propaganda against the regime, offensive statements against the Supreme Leader of Iran.
Conviction: 3 years and a fine

35. Nizar Zakka

Date of Arrest: 2015
Date of Release: June 11, 2019
Nationality: Lebanese citizen, US resident
Charges: Espionage and collaboration with hostile countries
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment and a fine of 4.2 million dollars

* 36. Siamak Namazi

Date of arrest: October 2015
Date of release: N/A
Citizenship: Iranian-American
Charges: Collaborating with a hostile government (U.S.A.)
Sentence: 10 years imprisonment

37. Matthew Trevithick

Date of Arrest: December 8, 2015
Date of Release: January 2016
Nationality: American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Unknown

38. Sanya Bobnevich

Date of Arrest: December 13, 2015
Date of Release: January 2016
Nationality: Croatian-Swedish
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Released on bail

39. Kamran Ghaderi

Date of arrest: December 2015
Date of release: N/A
Citizenship: Iranian-Austrian
Charges: Espionage
Sentence: 10 years imprisonment

* 40. Bagher Namazi

Date of Arrest: March 2016
Date of Release: Spring 2019. Released due to need for medical treatment.
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Collaboration with a hostile country (U.S.A.)
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment

* 41. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Date of Arrest: April, 2016
Date of Release: First case, March 2021. Second case, pending removal of travel ban restrictions.
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: First case, Collusion against the State. Second case, Propaganda against the regime.
Conviction: First case, 5 years imprisonment. Second case, 1-year imprisonment and 1-year travel ban

* 42. Ahmadreza Jalali

Date of Arrest: April 2016
Date of Release: N/A
Nationality: Iranian-Swedish
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Executed

43. Homa Hoodfar

Date of Arrest: June 6, 2016
Date of Release: October 2016
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

44. Reza (Rabin) Shahini

Date of Arrest: July 15, 2016
Date of Release: April 2017
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Collaboration with Voice of America news channel (VOA) and appearance in their TV programs, propaganda against the regime in favor of anti-regime groups, membership in anti-regime groups such as the proponents of the re-establishing the monarchy in Iran, instigating people to disturb national security and offensive statements against former and current Supreme Leader of Iran.
Conviction: 18 years imprisonment, of which 9 years is enforceable. He was released on bail of 200 million tomans.

45. Afarin Neysari

Date of Arrest: July 20, 2016
Date of Release: Mid-July, 2018
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 16 years imprisonment. Released on bail of 40 billion tomans

46. Karan Vafadari

Date of Arrest: July 20, 2016
Date of Release: Mid-July, 2018
Nationality: Iranian- American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 27 years imprisonment. Released on bail of 40 billion tomans

47. Xiyue Wang

Date of Arrest: Summer 2016
Date of Release: November 2019
Nationality: Chinese-American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment. Released through a prisoner swap with the U.S. government in exchange for an Iranian Prisoner.

48. Abdolrasoul Dorri-Esfahani

Date of Arrest: August, 2016
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Espionage and collaboration with the British Intelligence Service
Conviction: 5 years imprisonment

49. Anoosheh Ashoori

Date of Arrest: 2017
Date of Release: N/A
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: Spying for Israel and acquisition of illegitimate property
Conviction: 12 years imprisonment and fine of 33 thousand euros

* 50. Morad Tahbaz

Date of Arrest: January 24, 2018
Date of Release: Jailed in Evin Prison
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment

51. Kavous Seyed-Emami

Date of Arrest: January 2018
Date of Release: Died in prison
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Unknown

52. Aras Amiri

Date of Arrest: March 2018
Date of Release: July 2021
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment

53. Bahareh Amidi (Wife of Emad Sharghi)

Date of Arrest: April 4, 2018
Date of Release: 2018 (likely shortly after arrest)
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

54. Abbas Edalat

Date of Arrest: April 15, 2018
Date of Release: January, 2019
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

55. Michael White

Date of Arrest: July 1, 2018
Date of Release: June 4, 2020
Nationality: American
Charges: Offensive statements against the Supreme Leader of Iran and doxing.
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment

56. Kylie Moore Gilbert

Date of Arrest: Fall 2018
Date of Release: November 25, 2020
Nationality: Australian-British
Charges: Acting against national security
Conviction: 10 years imprisonment

57. Nelly Erin-Cambervelle

Date of Arrest: October 21, 2018
Date of Release: February 24, 2019
Nationality: French
Charges: Allegedly signing an illegal mining contract
Conviction: Unknown

58. Meimanat Hosseini-Chavoshi

Date of Arrest: November, 2018
Date of Release: January, 2019
Nationality: Iranian-Australian
Charges: Collaboration with foreign countries, assembly and collusion against national security through conducting research on the decrease in birth rate
Conviction: 5 years imprisonment

59. Kamil Ahmadi

Date of Arrest: August 11, 2019
Date of Release: November 18, 2019
Nationality: Iranian-British
Charges: Acquisition of illegal wealth through collaboration with institutions hostile to the regime.
Conviction: 9 years imprisonment and a fine of 600,000 euros

60. Akbar Lakestani

Date of Arrest: September 28, 2019
Date of Release: November 13, 2019
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Propaganda against the regime
Conviction: Released on bail. He left the country after his release.

61. Ruhollah Zam

Date of Arrest: October 2019
Date of Release: Executed
Nationality: Iranian-Resident of France
Charges: Spreading corruption on earth, launching and managing the Telegram channel “Amadnews” and “Sedaye Mardom” to disturb national security, spying for Israel and another country in the region, spying for the French intelligence service, collaborating with the U.S. government, assembly and collusion to act against national security, propaganda against the regime, membership in news outlet “Saham News” to with intent to disturb national security, instigating people, gathering classified information, spreading lies, Instigating military forces of the regime to revolt and disobey, blasphemy, and acquisition of illegal properties
Conviction: Death penalty

* 62. Yulia Yuzik

Date of Arrest: October 3, 2019
Date of Release: October 10, 2019
Nationality: Russian
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: Detained for one week. Left Iran immediately following her release.

* 63. Benjamin Briere

Date of Arrest: May 2020
Date of Release: N/A
Nationality: French
Charges: Espionage and propaganda against the regime
Conviction: 8 years imprisonment

* 64. Reza Eslami

Date of Arrest: May 10, 2020
Date of Release: Imprisoned
Nationality: Iranian-Canadian
Charges: Collaboration with hostile countries (U.S.A.) against the Islamic Republic of Iran through participation in educational courses about the Rule of Law in Czech Republic.
Conviction: 7 years imprisonment, prohibited from teaching and leaving the country.

* 65. Jamshid Sharmahd

Date of Arrest: August 2020
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Iranian-German
Charges: Unknown
Conviction: Unknown

* 66. Nahid Taghavi

Date of Arrest: October 16, 2020
Date of Release: N/A
Nationality: Iranian-German
Charges: Participation in forming unlawful groups and “propaganda against the regime.
Conviction: 10 years and 8 months imprisonment

67. Emad Sharghi

Date of Arrest: Fall 2020
Date of Release: N/A
Nationality: Iranian-American
Charges: Espionage and gathering military intelligence
Conviction: 9 years imprisonment and a fine of 600,000 euros

68. Tavakoli

Date of Arrest: Unknown
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Dual Nationalities
Charges: Espionage
Conviction: 8 years and 6 months imprisonment

* 69. Habib Chaab

Date of Arrest: November 2021
Date of Release: Unknown
Nationality: Iranian-Swedish
Charges: Spreading corruption on earth, leading an anti-regime group, attemptign to sabotage public and private places and planning terrorism operations, destruction of public property
Conviction: Unknown

_________________________

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

Coronavirus outbreak in Iranian prisons

Posted on March 4, 2020 by admin-hr

Prisoners

On February 29, 2020, Ebrahim Raisi, the Chief Justice of Iran, issued a circular laying out policies to prevent the spread of Coronavirus in prisons. This order mandates giving 15 -30 days furlough to prisoners with sentences less than five years. Another part of this order is about reducing entries into prisons, temporary releases, and public activities in prisons. In addition, this order mandates to increase alternative sentences and suspended prison terms instead of imprisonments.

Although the Chief Justice of Iran announced that the prisoners with less than five years prison term will be granted furlough, the prison authorities are not cooperative with political prisoners and prisoners of conscience to implement this regulation. As an example, Esmaeil Abdi and Negin Ghadamian were sentenced to five years imprisonment and after spending four and three years in prison respectively, they were not granted any furlough. Nazanin Zaghari’s husband reported that she is suspected to have Coronavirus. She is serving the 4th year of her five-year imprisonment sentence. Reportedly, three women were diagnosed with Coronavirus in Evin Prison.

The number of prisoners suspected of having coronavirus is increasing. Several prisoners suspected of having coronavirus were identified in Urmia, Khorramabad, Gorgan, Sanandaj, Qom, and other prisons.

A letter from political prisoner’s families

With the current spread of Coronavirus in prisons in Iran, some of the families of the political and security prisoners have written a letter to the judicial authorities on February 26, 2020, requesting furlough for prisoners until this crisis (Coronavirus) is over in the prisons. Considering the closed environment of the prison, malnutrition of the prisoners, shortage of medical care and facilities, high density of prisoners, and the occurrence of some cases suspected to be related to coronavirus has raised concerns of the families of prisoners.

The families of the following prisoners have signed this letter:

Mahmoud Beheshti Langeroudi, Esmaeil Abdi, Mohammad Habibi, Narges Mohammadi, Amir Salar Davoudi, Farhad Meisami, Roeen Otoufat, Jafar Azimzadeh, Shahnaz Akmali, Majid Azarpey, Atena Daemi, Sam Rajabi, Morad Tahbaz, Niloufar Bayani, Abdolreza Kouhpaieh, Amirhossein Khaleghi, Houman Jokar, Taher Ghadirian, Neda Naji, Mehrdad Mohammadnejad, Mohammad Abolhasani, Peyman Koushkbaghi, Aras Amiri, Jafar Fazel, and Alireza Golipour.

In some of the prisons, such as Khorramabad or Sanandaj Prisons, the prisoners asked the authorities to provide them with medical and hygiene necessities and to quarantine the prisoners who are suspected to be infected and have threatened that if this negligence is continuous, they will go on hunger strike. Other prisons such as Karaj, Tabriz, Evin and many other prisons across the country are also demanding similar precautions.

A death in Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary

It should be noted that on the same day, a prisoner of Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary who had symptoms similar to that of Coronavirus passed away after the prison authorities delayed in transferring him to the hospital to receive proper medical care. His name was Hamid Reza and he was 44 years old. He was convicted of a financial felony who was serving his sentence in Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary. He was initially diagnosed with symptoms of flu but after a few days, he started to cough and eventually passed away in the prion.

In addition, 60 prisoners of Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary who were working in the kitchen or service sector, were transferred to Rajai Shahr Prison. Moreover, 7 other prisoners in section 5 ward 2 have Coronavirus symptoms; they were kept in the medical ward without receiving medical care and were not transferred to the hospital.

Evin Prison and the violation of the Prisoners Classification Regulation

Amir Hossein Moradi, Saeed Tamjidi, Mohammad Rajabi, Milad Arsanjani, Jamil Ghahremani, and 15 other arrestees of the last November’s protests who were kept in Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary, were moved from their cell after an inmate was diagnosed with Coronavirus in their cell. Amir Hossein Moradi returned to prison on February 29, 2020, after spending a week in the hospital for another disease. He returned to his cell but after an hour he was transferred to the medical ward for his positive test results of Coronavirus. Although they were told that they will be transferred to Yaft Abad Hospital, they were transferred to ward 1 of this prison, which belongs to the prisoners who committed violent crimes. In June 2019, Alireza Shir Mohammadi, a political prisoner, was fatally stabbed in this ward by two other inmates of this ward who were charged with a drug felony. After this incident, the prison authorities moved other political prisoners from this ward to avoid future incidents. This is against prisoners’ segregation rule. According to a close source “section, 1 of the Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary has 10 wards and one suite which had been used as an exile to punish the prisoners who get in the fight or carry drugs. Since 2018, the political prisoners have been transferred to this suite. This suite has limited facilities and does not even have access to prison commissaries. Their door should be locked all the time however, in the case of Mr. Shir Mohammadi, the warden intentionally did not lock the door which was illegal.

Alireza Shir Mohammadi, a 21-year-old political prisoner at the Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary was murdered in prison on June 10, 2019. He was attacked by two other prisoners, who were later convicted of murder and sentenced to death. The prisoner in question was stabbed in the neck and stomach and died before arriving at the hospital. Shir Mohammad Ali was arrested on July 14, 2018, and was sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of “blasphemy”, “insulting the former and current Supreme Leaders”, and “propaganda against the state”. He was detained in a solitary confinement cell for 36 days after being arrested. His bail was set at 80 million Tomans but the Revolutionary Court illegally rejected his release on bail. Throughout his prosecution process, he did not have access to an attorney because of his financial conditions. He was waiting for the decision of the appeal’s court when he was murdered. He protested his detention along with non-political prisoners and went on a hunger strike on March 14, 2019, which ended on April 16 after prison authorities accepted his demands. He also wrote open letters criticizing the “unsafe” and “inhumane” conditions of Greater Tehran’s Penitentiary Prison. He wrote an open letter five days into his hunger strike on March 18, 2019. In this letter, he explained the awful condition he was experiencing in prison. In addition, he claimed that he was denied regular social rights that any prisoner is entitled to have. However, his main request, reflected in this letter, was to be transferred to another prison (Evin prison). No judicial authorities or prison officials reacted to his open letter.

A prisoner of ward 4 of Evin Prison was transferred to an unknown place for his positive test results of Coronavirus. He kept with several other prisoners and political prisoners of this ward who are on hunger strike and are more vulnerable to this disease.

Khorramabad and Ghezel Hesar Prisons

On March 1, 2020, the prisoners of Khorramabad Prison have started a sit-in to protest not being sent to furlough although Coronavirus has spread in this prison. There is a shortage of access to medical care and hygiene products for the diagnosis and treatment of Coronavirus. Several prisoners who have symptoms of this disease did not receive any treatment and were kept with other prisoners. Several prisoners who went on furlough were returned to prison. A close source to a family of a prisoner in this prison told HRANA that a sick inmate with severe coughs received neither medical care nor disinfecting substances and hygiene products such as alcohol, mask, and gloves.

Two prisoners of Qezelhesar Prison, Basat Ali Khazaei, and Gholamhossein Abolfavaei were moved to the quarantine section in the health ward due to having positive test results of Coronavirus. They were charged with drug felony and kept in a ward with 500 other inmates.

Rajai Shahr and Urmia Prisons

The prisoners are deprived of medical care, disinfecting substances, and hygiene products such as alcohol, mask, and gloves. Payam Shakiba, Mohammad Banazadeh Amirkhizi, and Majid Asadi are serving their third year in prison. Arash Sadeghi, who is diagnosed with Chondrosarcoma (bone cancer), has had an infection in his right hand, digestion issues, and because of his weak immune system should be prioritized to be granted a furlough. Saeed Shirzad is spending the last months of his prison sentence.

On March 2, 2020, Mohammad Ghanbardoost, a political prisoner, was transferred to the hospital due to having symptoms of coronavirus disease. He kept with other political prisoners and may infected others. He was arrested on August 16, 2017, and was sentenced to five years in prison on the charge of “cooperating with Takfiri groups”.

Several Coronavirus suspected patients in Urmia Prison were transferred to hospitals outside the prison. One Urmia prisoner died in hospital, but prison authorities claimed that he was infected outside the prison.

Update on political prisoners temporary releases

On March 3, 2020, Mohammad Karimi granted a furlough and temporarily released until April 3, 2020. Mr. Karimi was sentenced to one-year imprisonment on the charge of “propaganda against the state” which was upheld by the appeals court. on July 3, 2020, he was arrested and transferred to Evin Prison to serve his sentence.

On March 2, 2020, Shahnaz Akmali, political prisoner, was granted a furlough and temporarily released until April 3, 2020. She was arrested on January 15, 2020. She was sentenced to one-year imprisonment and was banned from having any social media account, membership in any group, and leaving the country on the charge of “propaganda against the state”. An appeals court upheld her sentence without hearing either Ms. Akmali or her attorney. She is the mother of Mostafa Karim Beygi one of the people who was killed by security forces during green movement uprising in 2009.

On February 29, 2020, Reza Gholamhosseini, a political prisoner of Bandar Abbas Prison, was granted a furlough and temporarily released until April 3, 2020. He was arrested on September 25, 2019, and was sentenced to three years imprisonment on the charges of “propaganda against the state” and “insulting supreme leader”. His sentence was reduced to 18 months later because he did not request an appeal.

First six months of Ebrahim Raisi as Justiciary Chief of Iran; 1000 years of prison sentences and 1500 lashes for activists

Posted on September 13, 2019 by admin-hr

Other

Abbas Lesani, Abbas Nouri Shadkam, Abdollah Ghasimpour, Abdul Azim Arouji, Abolfazl Ghadyani, Adel Samaei, Ali Amin Amlashi, Ali Babai, Ali Bagheri, Ali Bani Sadeh, Ali Johari, Ali Mozafari, Alireza Habibi, Alireza Kafai, Alireza Saghafi, Aliyeh Eghdam Doost, Amanollah Balochi, Amin Seybar, Amir Amirgholi, Amir Hossein Mohammadi Fard, Amir Mahdi Jalayeri, Amir Mahdi Sedighara, Amir Salar Davoodi, Anoushah Ashouri, aras amiri, Aref Mohammadi, Arsham Rezai, Arshia Rahmati, Asadollah Jaberi, Asal Mohammadi, Asghar Amirzadegani, Ata’ollah Ahsani, Atefeh Rangriz, Athena Daemi, Azam Najafi, Bahman Kord, Bahman Salehi, Baktash Abtin, Bani Naami, Bapir Barzeh, Barzan Mohammadi, Behnam Ebrahimzadeh, Behnam Mousavand, Behrooz Zare, Behzad Ali Bakhshi, Behzad Shahsavar, Bijan Ahmadi, Dariush Abdar, Davood Mahmoodi, Davood Razavi, Ebrahim Reisi, Edris Kasravi, Eghbal Shabani, Ehsan Kheybar, Ehteram Sheykhi, Emad Jaberi, Esmael Bakhshi, Esmail Gerami, Esmail Jaadeleh, Farhad Sheykhi, Farideh Jaberi, Farideh Toosi, Farokhlegha aramarzi, Farough Izadi Nia, Farzad Bahadori, Fatemeh Bakhtari, Fatemeh Mohammadi, Feisal Saalebi, Firouz Ahmadi, Ghafour Barham, Golraki Ebrahimi Irai, Haleh Safarzadeh, Hamed Ayenehvand, Hamid Balkhkanloo, Hamid Reza Rahmati, Hasan Saeedi, Hashem Zeinali, Hossein Ali Montazeri, Hossein Ansari Zadeh, Hossein Ghadyani, Hossein Gholami, Hossein Habibi, Hossein Janati, Ishaq Rouhi, Ismail Hosseini Koohkamarai, Jafar Azimzadeh, Jafar Pekand, Jafar Rostami, Javad Lari, Javad Zolnouri, Kamal Jafari Yazdi, Kambiz Misaghi, Kazem Safabakhsh, Keyvan Bajan, Keyvan Nejadrasoul, Khadijeh (Leila) Mirghafari, Khaled Hosseini, Khalil Karimi, Khalil Malaki, Kheirollah Bakhshi, Kianoush Aslani, Kianoush Ghahramani, Kiumars Marzban, Leila Hosseinzadeh, Mahmood Masoumi, Mardas Taheri, Maryam Amiri, Maryam Mokhtari, Marzieh Amiri, Masoud Ajloo, Masoud Hamidi, Masoud Kazemi, Matin Amiri, Mehdi Moghadari, Michael White, Milad Mohammad Hosseini, Mino Riazati, Mir Mousa Ziagari, Mobinollah Veysi, Moein Mohammadi, Mohammad Ali Zahmatkesh, Mohammad Asri, Mohammad Dorosti, Mohammad Hossein Ghasempour, Mohammad Khanifar, Mohammad Mirzai, Mohammad Najafi, Mohammad Potaiesh, Mohammad Rasoulof, Mohammad Reza Aghajari, Mohammad Reza Khatami, Mohammad Saber Malek Raeissi, Mohsen Haghshenas, Mohsen Haseli, Mohsen Shojai, Mojgan Keshavarz, Mojgan Lali, Mojtaba Dadashi, Mojtaba Parvin, Monika Alizadeh, Monireh Arabshahi, Nader Afshari, Nader Fotourehchi, Nahid Khodakarami, Najaf Mehdipour, Nariman Noroozi, Nasrin Javadi, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Negin Tadrisi, Nejat Bahrami, Nima Saffar, Oldoz Ghasemi, Omid Asadi, Omid Azadi, Parvin Soleimani, Peyman Mirzazadeh, Pooneh Nasheri, Raheleh Rahimipour, Rahim Gholami, Rahim Mohammadpour, Rahman Abed, Rasoul Bodaghi, Rasoul Taleb Moghadam, Reza Khand Mahabadi, Reza Makian (Malek), Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbeigi, Roozbeh Meshkinkhat, Rostam Abdollah Zadeh, Saab Zahiri, Saba Kord-Afshari, Sadegh Larijani, Sadegh Zibaklam, Saeed Eghbali, Saeed Seyfi Jahan, Saghar Mohammadi, Sahand Moali, Sahar Kazemi, Sahar Khodayari, Sajad Shahiri, Salar Taher Afshar, Salman Afra, Samko Jafari, Sanaz Allahyari, Sara Saei, Sepideh Gholian, Shabnam Issa Khani, Shaghayegh Makai, Shahryar Khodapanah, Shaker Maravi, Sharmin Yomni, Sheida Abedi, Shima Babai Zeydi, Shir Ahmad Shirani, Shirko Ali Mohammadi, Siamand Shahsavar, Siavash Rezaian, Simin Eyvazzadeh, Simin Mohammadi, Sina Darvish Omran, Sofia Mombini, Sohrab Malaki, Taher Sufi, Tofigh Mahmoudi, Tohid Amir Amini, Vali Nasiri, Vida Movahed, Yasaman Aryani, Yousef Jalil, Yousef Salahshour, Zahra Modarreszadeh, Zaman Fadai

Ebrahim Raisi is a former Custodian and Chairman of Astan Quds Razavi from 2016 to 2019 and a member of so-called “death commission” during the 1988 executions which were series of state-sponsored execution of political prisoners across the country. He succeeded Sadegh Larijani as the Judiciary Chief (the head of judicial system of Iran) in 2019. Being appointed as the Judiciary Chief by the Supreme leader, Ebrahim Raisi claimed that he wants the Iranian people to taste “the sweet flavor of justice” by reforming the judicial system to bring more justice and fairness. Six months after being appointed to the new position, the verdicts of political prisoners indicate that the pressure is increased on the civil rights activists and opposition groups in Iran. During six months of Ebrahim Raisi in office, political activists were sentenced to 1,027 years in prison and 1428 lashes. Therefore, the verdicts targeting civil rights activists and opposition groups were increased by 119% compared to a similar time period during his predecessor, Sadegh Larijani, who was in office for nine and half years. Although Larijani faced massive demonstrations such as uprisings across the country in January 2017 and August 2018, protests in the Khuzestan province, and Dervishes protests which Raisi has not faced any yet.

Statistics Comparison of Verdicts with the Former Judiciary Chief

The following is a summary of verdicts between March 8, 2019 to September 8, 2019 which was gathered and analyzed by the Department of Statistics and Publication of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI): According to statistics, during this period, both sentences against political and civil activists or years of sentences were increased. 211 political or civil activists including advocates of freedom of expression, women rights activists, syndicates activists, students, ethnicity rights activists, labor rights activists, minority rights advocates, and religion activists were sentenced by the Revolutionary Court across the country to 1027 and six months of imprisonment, 418 million and 350 thousand Tomans of fines, and 428 lashes. Out of these numbers, 966 years and 8 months in prison sentences and 30 years and 10 months are suspended prison sentences. In comparison to the same period when Larijani was the Judiciary Chief, March 8 to September 8, 2018, 278 political and civil activists were sentenced to 468 years and one month in prison, 254 million Tomans fines, and 891 lashes. This comparison is based on the numbers of individual cases but mass sentences for the arrestees of uprisings such as 232 verdicts of Gonabadi dervishes in the case of so-called “Golestan Haftom” have been excluded. Overall, these statistics indicated that although the number of arrestees has been decreased in Raisi’s term but the average number of verdicts in comparison to the same period in the Larijani’s term has been increased.

The Names of 211 Activists Who Were Sentenced to Prison Term or Lashes During Ebrahim Raeissi’s term

Kiumars Marzban, Shima Babai Zeydi, Dariush Abdar, Mahmood Masoumi, Behnam Mousavand, Saeed Eghbali, Mojgan Lali, Saeed Seyfi Jahan, Shaghayegh Makai, Nader Afshari, Anoushah Ashouri, Ali Johari, Marzieh Amiri, Ishaq Rouhi, Mohammad Saber Malek Raeissi, Shir Ahmad Shirani, Kamal Jafari Yazdi, Aras Amiri, Nejat Bahrami, Sadegh Zibaklam, Hamed Ayenehvand, Roozbeh Meshkinkhat, Mohammad Reza Aghajari, Nima Saffar, Khalil Karimi, Mehdi Moghadari, Golraki Ebrahimi Irai, Athena Daemi, Mohammad Reza Khatami, Mohammad Potaiesh, Khadijeh (Leila) Mirghafari, Reza Makian (Malek), Hashem Zeinali, Simin Eyvazzadeh, Ehsan Kheybar, Abdul Azim Arouji, Mohsen Haseli, Mohsen Shojai, Azam Najafi, Parvin Soleimani, Sharmin Yomni, Sara Saei, Arshia Rahmati, Masoud Hamidi, Ali Babai, Ismail Hosseini Koohkamarai, Farideh Toosi, Zahra Modarreszadeh, Amir Mahdi Jalayeri, Mohammad Najafi, Javad Lari, Rahim Mohammadpour, Masoud Kazemi, Sahar Kazemi, Amir Salar Davoodi, Milad Mohammad Hosseini, Abdollah Ghasimpour, Mohammad Hossein Ghasempour, Alireza Habibi, Baktash Abtin, Reza Khand Mahabadi, Keyvan Bajan, Yousef Salahshour, Davood Mahmoodi, Mohammad Asri, Siavash Rezaian, Najaf Mehdipour, Behrooz Zare, Ata’ollah Ahsani, Abbas Nouri Shadkam, Ali Bagheri, Masoud Ajloo, Behzad Ali Bakhshi, Kianoush Ghahramani, Nariman Noroozi, Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbeigi, Amir Mahdi Sedighara, Ali Amin Amlashi, Barzan Mohammadi, Arsham Rezai, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Michael White, Abolfazl Ghadyani, Nader Fotourehchi, Farhad Sheykhi, Mardas Taheri, Aliyeh Eghdam Doost, Rasoul Bodaghi, Esmail Gerami, Javad Zolnouri, Hossein Gholami, Rahman Abed, Asghar Amirzadegani, Hamid Reza Rahmati, Eghbal Shabani, Mohammad Ali Zahmatkesh, Fatemeh Mohammadi, Bahman Kord, Sina Darvish Omran, Ali Mozafari, Leila Hosseinzadeh, Mojtaba Dadashi, Mohammad Rasoulof, Hossein Janati, Omid Asadi, Sahand Moali, Mohammad Mirzai, Bapir Barzeh, Shirko Ali Mohammadi, Keyvan Nejadrasoul, Tohid Amir Amini, Kianoush Aslani, Abbas Lesani, Mobinollah Veysi, Mojtaba Parvin, Kazem Safabakhsh, Rahim Gholami, Jafar Rostami, Aref Mohammadi, Peyman Mirzazadeh, Samko Jafari, Behzad Shahsavar, Siamand Shahsavar, Salman Afra, Shaker Maravi, Khaled Hosseini, Rasoul Taleb Moghadam, Hasan Saeedi, Hossein Ansari Zadeh, Feisal Saalebi, Saab Zahiri, Adel Samaei, Esmail Jaadeleh, Bani Naami, Omid Azadi, Rostam Abdollah Zadeh, Ali Bani Sadeh, Nasrin Javadi, Tofigh Mahmoudi, Davood Razavi, Amanollah Balochi, Farough Izadi Nia, Moein Mohammadi, Sheida Abedi, Firouz Ahmadi, Khalil Malaki, Simin Mohammadi, Bijan Ahmadi, Maryam Mokhtari, Saghar Mohammadi, Sohrab Malaki, Bahman Salehi, Sofia Mombini, Negin Tadrisi, Kheirollah Bakhshi, Shabnam Issa Khani, Shahryar Khodapanah, Farzad Bahadori, Kambiz Misaghi, Monika Alizadeh, Mino Riazati, Asadollah Jaberi, Ehteram Sheykhi, Emad Jaberi, Farideh Jaberi, Farokhlegha Faramarzi, Pooneh Nasheri, Saba Kord Afshari, Yasaman Aryani, Monireh Arabshahi, Mojgan Keshavarz, Vida Movahed, Matin Amiri, Maryam Amiri, Atefeh Rangriz, Edris Kasravi, Taher Sufi, Haleh Safarzadeh, Alireza Saghafi, Yousef Jalil, Fatemeh Bakhtari, Zaman Fadai, Behnam Ebrahimzadeh, Mohsen Haghshenas, Nahid Khodakarami, Raheleh Rahimipour, Alireza Kafai, Mohammad Dorosti, Salar Taher Afshar, Oldoz Ghasemi, Jafar Azimzadeh, Hossein Habibi, Hossein Ghadyani, Mir Mousa Ziagari, Sajad Shahiri, Jafar Pekand , Hamid Balkhkanloo, Ghafour Barham, Vali Nasiri, Sahar Khodayari, Amin Seybar, Esmael Bakhshi, Sepideh Gholian, Amir Amirgholi, Amir Hossein Mohammadi Fard, Sanaz Allahyari, Asal Mohammadi, Mohammad Khanifar.

It should be noted that in addition to aforementioned names, several other activists such as detained environmentalists, arrestees of the International Labor Day’s protest, Baha’i citizens, and supporters of opposition groups are waiting for their verdicts. Based on the outcome of the first six months of Raisi as the Chief Justice of Iran, the continuous increase of the verdicts in the following six months is predictable. On the other hand, according to several lawyers, Raisi is trying to implement a rule in which the appeal’s courts will be in session only after obtaining permissions from the Supreme Leader. Thus, appeals courts will acknowledge the primary verdict without reserving a chance for lawyers and convict to defend.

Ebrahim Raisi’s Background

In 1981, 20-year old Ebrahim Raisi was appointed as the prosecutor of Karaj. Later in 1985, he was appointed as the Deputy Prosecutor of Tehran. He was a member of so-called “death commission” during the 1988 political prisoners’ executions across the country. Raisi was appointed as Tehran’s prosecutor from 1989 to 1994. In 1994-1995, he was appointed as the head of the General Inspection Office. From 2004 until 2014, Raisi served as the First Deputy Chief Justice of Iran. He was later appointed as the Attorney-General of Iran in 2014-2016. He has also served as the Special Clerical Court prosecutor since 2012. He became the Chairman of Astan Quds Razavi on 7 March 2016 after the death of his predecessor Abbas Vaez-Tabasi. He is the second person to serve this office from 1979. Raisi ran a presidential campaign in February 2017 but after losing the presidential election, he was appointed by Ali Khamenei as a member of Expediency Discernment Council.

The 1988 executions of the Iranian political prisoners were a series of state-sponsored execution of political prisoners, starting on 19 July 1988 and lasting for approximately five months. The majority of those who were killed were supporters of the Mujahedin Khalgh but supporters of other leftist factions such as Communist party were executed as well. The killings have been described as a political purge without precedent in the modern Iranian history, both in terms of scope and coverup. Different sources put the number of victims between 2500 and 30000. Most of the people who were executed had already served their sentences in prison. Hussein-Ali Montazeri, deputy of Supreme Leader of Iran between 1985-1989, named Ebrahim Raisi as one of the people who was in administration of the executions which according to Montazeri, was implemented by a four-men commission, later known as the “death committee”. According to Montazeri, the commission consisted of Ebrahim Raisi, Hossein Ali Nayyeri, Morteza Eshraghi, and Mostafa Pour Mohammadi.

Profiles: the Women’s Section of Evin Prison

Posted on September 30, 2018 by admin-hr

Prisoners, Women

Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – The 17 prisoners held on political or security-related charges in the Women’s Ward of Tehran’s Evin Prison live with deplorable conditions, compromised hygiene, and paltry nutrition. The following is a brief exposé of their quality of life, followed by a snapshot of their individual case files.

Many of these prisoners are mothers pained by the distance from their children, a pain that is only exacerbated by the prison chief’s refusal to grant them access to the phone on days of the week that their children are home from school. While the prisoners were granted permission from prosecutors to open the Saturday-to-Wednesday phone schedule to any day of the week, the chief, who goes by “Chaharmahali,” has refused to loosen up the former protocol.

In another blatant disregard of court orders, prison authorities refuse to send prisoners to outside medical clinics even when prosecutors and deputy prosecutors order or grant permission for the transfers. Prison authorities justify their refusal by saying that the prison clinic has its own doctors, or will recruit them as necessary; yet prisoners needing help from a psychologist, eye doctor, or internal specialist wait months to be seen.

These women are effectively hindered from providing even the most basic care to themselves, as clinic authorities refuse to distribute basic medicine or first aid kits to inmates. Many–insulted by the stipulations from Khani, the clinic head, that they take all of their nightly medication in one supervised sitting–have quit their medications in protest, and are experiencing aggravated symptoms as a result.

Evin Prison dentistry operates in less-than-sterile conditions and exposes patients to remarkably high risk for infections. Cavity fillings are expensive there, putting patients out as much as 20 million rials (approximately $114 USD) or preventing them, for lack of means, from getting the fillings they need. Many of the Evin women have trouble footing the bill, as the now-unemployed breadwinners of their households or as the wives of men who are also behind bars.

Prison food rations are growing more pitiful by the day. Forty-day rations of dry food items that are distributed to prisoners are depleted without fail within half that time. In the last six months, meat and vegetables have been cut from the prisoners’ diets.

Hygiene and cleaning items are also in short supply. Most prisoners run out, and those who can’t afford the pricey prison shop simply do without.

Deputy prosecutor Rostami oversees political and security prisoners and recently took up his position in Evin’s prosecutorial office. While he has verbally engaged to welcome prisoner families into his office on Sundays and Tuesdays, complaints from these families suggest that he is chronically unavailable, impassive to their requests, and generally unaccountable. Complaints lead nowhere, families say; requests for furlough or conditional release are routinely ignored.

Prison authorities rarely visit the Women Section, and tend to either lose or ignore any letters from its inmates.

Who are the women of Evin Prison’s Women’s Ward?

1- Maryam Akbari Monfared (born 1975)

Convicted of enmity against god, gathering and colluding against national security and propagating against the regime through working with the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), Monfared is serving a suspended sentence of 15 years.

Monfared was arrested December 31, 2009, following a widespread Ashura demonstration during the holy month of Muharram. She was tried the following May and sentenced by Branch 15 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, presided by Judge Salavati. She denied the accusations against her.

Monfared has been shuffled around different penitentiaries over the course of her imprisonment, inducing the solitary cells of Ward 209, the Methadone Ward, the Women’s Ward, Rajai Shahr Prison, and Qarchak Prison in Varamin. After writing several letters to clerics, prison authorities, and Ahmad Shaheed, then the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran, she was returned to Evin’s Women’s Ward and has remained there since.

Two of Maryam’s brothers were executed in 1981 and 1984 for their connections to the MEK. Another younger brother and a sister were also executed during the 1988 massacre.

Maryam, a mother of two, has been barred from conditional release and has not received a single day of furlough since she began her sentence in 2009.

2- Zahra Zahtabchi (born 1969)

Zahra Zahtabchi was issued a 10-year suspended sentence for Baqi (violation) and enmity against god through support of the MEK.

Zahtabchi was arrested with her husband and daughter on October 16, 2013. She came to Evin’s Women’s Ward after spending 14 months in the solitary cells of Ward 209. On December 8, 2014, Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Courts sentenced her to 12 years in prison. The sentence was reduced to 10 years in appeals court.

Her two daughters are Narges, 22 and Mina, 15.

In 2016, three years after her arrest, she went on furlough for three days.

3- Fatemeh Mosana (born 1967)

Fatemeh Mosana was sentenced to 15 years for Baqi and enmity against god through support of the MEK in Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Ahmadzadeh. Her husband Hassan Sadeghi received the same sentence.

Mosana, Sadeghi, and their child were arrested January 28, 2013, by Intelligence Ministry forces. The child was released after six weeks.

Mosana spent 75 days in the solitary cells of Ward 209 before her transfer to the Women’s Ward.

On January 13, 2014, she was temporarily released on bail. Some of her family’s property, including Sadeghi’s shop and their personal house, was seized by the authorities.

On September 30, 2015, she was re-arrested and taken to the Women’s Ward. She has two children who currently live with their ailing grandmothers.

Mosana, who suffers from ulcerative colitis and severe nervous migraines, has never been granted furlough.

4- Narges Mohammadi (born 1972)

Narges Mohammadi is serving a 16-year sentence, compounded by a six-year sentence on a previous case.

Narges was first arrested in 2002 and then released on bail after a week. For that case, she received a one-year sentence.

In May 2010, she was arrested and held for weeks in the solitary cells of Evin’s Ward 209 before being released on a bail of 1 billion rials. In 2011, she was convicted of gathering and collusion against national security and propaganda against the regime, which carried a sentence of 11 years in prison. The sentence was later reduced to six years in appeals court.

She started serving her sentence in 2012, which began with one month in solitary confinement and four months in exile in Zanjan. She was released due to health conditions before being re-arrested in 2015 to resume her sentence. At that point, authorities opened up a new case file against her, convicting her anew of gathering and collusion, and of propaganda against the regime, with the additional charge of establishing LEGAM, a campaign to abolish the death penalty. Collectively her charges earned her 16 years in prison, but by Article 134 of Islamic Penal Code, she should only serve 10 [i.e. the sentence corresponding to the heaviest among her multiple charges].

She has two children, and on the prosecutor’s orders is barred from having contact with her husband.

She suffers from pulmonary embolism and was granted a three-day furlough on September 29th.

5- Reyhaneh Haj Ebrahim Dabagh

Born in 1982, Reyhaneh Haj Ebrahim Dabagh is serving a 15-year exile imprisonment sentence, ruled by Judge Salavati in Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court on charges of enmity against god through support of the MEK, gathering and colluding, and propaganda against the regime.

Ebrahim Dabagh has been in prison since early 2010. She suffers from ulcerative colitis and has served exile time in Qarchak and Rajai Shahr prisons. Her husband Ahmad Daneshpour and her father-in-law Mohsen Daneshpour are awaiting trial in Evin’s Section 350. They are both said to have been sentenced to capital punishment.

After seven years in prison, Ebrahim Dabagh went on furlough for the first time in December 2016, and was briefly freed on bail. On August 15, 2018, she was sent back to Women’s Ward to serve the rest of her sentence.

6- Azita Rafizadeh (born 1980)

As part of a 2011 crackdown on the Baha’i academic community, security agents raided the homes of managers and professors at the Baha’i Institute of Higher Education (BIHE), including Azita Rafizadeh’s. In the raid, her religious books, personal writings, and electronic devices were confiscated.

Rafizadeh was sentenced in 2014 to four years in prison on charges of acting against national security and membership in “the illegal Baha’i organization.” Her husband Peyman Kooshkbaghi was sentenced to five years in prison at the same time.

She presented hersef to Evin’s prosecutors in 2015 to begin her sentence. On February 28, 2018, her husband was detained without reason in Evin’s section 8 while trying to arrange a visit with her. Rafizade and Kooshkbaghi have a 10-year-old son name Bashir who in absence of his parents has been trusted to the care of another family.

7- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe (born 1979)

Zaghari-Ratcliffe is serving a five-year suspended sentence on charges of gathering and collusion against national security.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested at the airport while visiting Iran on holiday in 2016. After a day in IRGC’s detention center, she was transferred to Kerman prison, and two months later to Tehran, where Judge Salavati issued her prison sentence in July of that year. A few months later, she was sent to the Women’s Ward.

On August 23rd, she was granted a three-day furlough after two and a half years in prison. She has a four-year-old daughter.

8- Aras Amiri (born in 1986)

A student of London’s Kingston University, Amiri was arrested by Intelligence Ministry forces on March 14, 2018, and released two months later after posting a 5000 million rial bail. On September 7, 2018, she was summoned and subsequently arrested by Evin prosecutors, after which she was sent to the prison’s Women’s Ward. She has denied the “gathering and collusion against national security” accusations against her and is still awaiting trial.

9- Golrokh Ebrahimi Irayi (born 1980)

Irayi was sentenced to six years in prison, which was reduced to 2.5 years based on amnesty and Article 134 of Islamic Penal Code. She was convicted of insulting the sacred and gathering and collusion against the regime. Earlier this year, she was exiled to Varamin’s Qarchak prison, and was brought back to Evin after going on hunger strike.

On September 6, 2014, Golrokh was arrested along with her husband, Arash Sadeghi. She spent two days in an IRGC safe house and then 20 days in the solitary cells of Evin’s Section 2A, which is under IRGC jurisdiction. She was released on a bail of 800 million rials.

Judge Salavati sentenced her to six year in prison while she was undergoing surgery in the hospital.

On October 24, 2016, the IRGC arrested her without a warrant. Her husband Arash Sadeghi was also arrested and sentenced to 19 years in prison. He is currently in Karaj’s Rajai Shahr prison and has undergone operations for cancer.

Arash and Golrokh have been forbidden from seeing each other for the past 8 months.

10- Nasrin Sotoudeh (born 1963)

According to Sotoudeh’s lawyer, she has been sentenced to five years in prison for espionage (a charge that does not figure on her charge sheet), a complaint from Kashan prosecutorial interrogators, and an arrest order from Branch Two of Evin’s interrogators. She currently awaits trial.

Sotoudeh was first arrested September 2010 and sentenced to 11 year in prison, a 20-year ban from the bar association, and 20-year travel ban. Appeals court reduced these sentences to six years in prison and a 10-year ban from the bar. She was in Evin prison from 2010 to 2013 on charges of “acting against national security.” Upon her release, lawyer’s court banned her from the bar for three years, which she protested in 2014 by organizing a sit-in in front of the Bar Association. Because of her sit-in, her attorney privileges were reinstated.

On June 13th of this year she was arrested in her home and taken to Evin prison. Her husband Reza Khandan is being held in Evin’s Section Four. Two of her children, Mehrave and Nima, are currently in the care of family friends.

11- Negin Ghadamian (born 1983)

Ghadamian was sentenced to a five-year suspended sentence on a conviction of against national security through membership in “the illegal Baha’i organization.”

On May 24, 2011, Negin was arrested by security forces and released on a bail of 500 million rials. In February 2013, along with eight other Baha’i citizens, she was convicted in absentia of working with the Baha’i Institute for Higher Education and sentenced to five years in prison by Judge Moghise. On December 16, 2017, she was arrested at the airport and sent to the Women’s Ward of Evin prison to serve her sentence.

12 – Masoumeh (Mino) Ghasemzade Malakshah (born 1976)

Malakshah and her ex-husband, Amir-Mehdi Tabasi were arrested in 2011 by the Intelligence Ministry agents. Both were detained and later released on bail on espionage charges after travelling to the Israeli embassy in Turkey and applying for residency in Israel. Both Malakshah and Tabasi were sentenced to 10 years, a sentence which was confirmed in appeals court in 2017.

Malakshah was taken to the Women’s Ward of Evin prison. Tabasi is detained in a different ward of same prison.

13- Ruqayya Haji Mashallah (born 1981)

Mashallah is awaiting trial on charges that are currently unclear.

Of Iranian origin, Mashallah is a citizen of Bahrain. She was arrested in May 2018 in Mashhad and taken to Evin’s Women’s Ward on June 27th of the same year. Her Bahraini husband has only been able to meet with her once since her arrest. She a mother to three children.

14- Leila Tajik (born 1973)

Tajik was arrested by IRGC’s Intelligence Department on September 5, 2017. She was taken to the Women’s Ward earlier this year after spending seven months in an IRGC safe house. Her husband, who is said to be a retired employee of IRGC’s Intelligence Department, is also under arrest. She awaits trial on charges of espionage.

Tajik and her spouse have two children aged 16 and 19.

15 – Atena (Fateme) Daemi (born 1988)

Daemi was arrested on October 21, 2014.

On May 15, 2015, Judge Moghise of Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court sentenced her to 14 year in prison on charges of collusion and gathering against national security, propaganda against the regime, and insulting the Supreme Leader. Her sentence was reduced to five years with application of Article 134 of Islamic Penal Code.

After her arrest and before her trial, she spent 86 days in the solitary cells of Section 2-A. On February 15, 2016, she was released on a bail of 5500 million rials. Her sentenced was reduced to seven years in appeals court in August of 2016.

Daemi was arrested in her father’s house that November, and cases against her two sisters and one of her brother-in-laws immediately followed. She went on hunger strike for 54 days until the charges against them were dropped. So far she has been acquitted of two case files that have been opened against her.

In January of this year, she was taken to Varamin’s Qarchak prison after being assaulted. On May 9th, she was taken back to Evin’s Women’s Ward. She has thus far been denied furlough and has yet to request parole.

16- Elham Barmaki (born 1968)

On December 28, 2011, Barmarki was arrested on the street and spent three months in the solitary cells of Section 209. She was then released on bail and was later acquitted.

On July 23, 2012, she was arrested again, this time spending 14 months Section 209 solitary cells. On September 29, 2013, she was transferred to the Women’s Ward.

In Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Moghise, Barmaki was sentenced to 10 years in prison and fines of 25,000 Euros, 70,000 USD, and 400 million rials. She has two children, Amir-Parviz and Anita, who both live abroad. She was released once on furlough in March 2017 for the Persian New Year. Her request for parole has been rejected.

17 – Sotoudeh Fazeli (born 1953)

Fazeli was arrested in early 2011 by the Intelligence Ministry. She spent 31 days in Evin’s Section 209 before being released on bail in 2011. Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Salavati, sentenced her to three years in prison on charges of “enmity against god by supporting the MEK.” She has been held in the Women’s Ward since June 29, 2016.

Fazeli suffers from eye and muscle problems, among other health conditions. She was released on a short furlough in 2016. Her requests for parole have been repeatedly rejected.

Since the beginning of the new Persian calendar year in 2018, 15 new prisoners have entered the Women’s Ward, including Zahra Zare, Negar Zarei, Mandana Azarmah, Akram Gholami, Aliyah Eghdamdoost, Akram Mirsane, Raha Fasayi, Parisa Rahmati, Batool Ezati and Arefe Aziz. A number of these women have been already released.

Iran: UK-Based Art Philosophy Student Detained on Charges of Threatening National Security

Posted on September 21, 2018 by admin-hr

Other, Prisoners, Students

aras amiri, dual nationals, Evin Prison, Human Rights, Iran, iran human rights, political hostage, uk student evin prison, uk student jailed in iran

Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Aras Amiri, an Iranian citizen and 10-year resident of the UK who was released on bail for national-security-related charges in March, was summoned to Evin Prison, read her charges, and transferred to the women’s ward on September 7, 2018.

Iranian intelligence officers apprehended the Kingston University graduate student on March 14, 2018, just prior to the Iranian New Year. She had been out of custody since posting a bond of $120,000 USD (500 million IRR) bail on May 21.

A source close to Amiri confirmed the news of her recent summons, and told HRANA that she is being pursued on charges of “action against national security.” “However,” the source added, “we are still in the dark about how she responded to that charge since the case file has yet to be sent to court.”

Prior to her arrest, Amiri–who studies the philosophy of art–was working to launch joint exhibition projects between Iranian and British artists, collaborating with bodies like the British Council and a UK-based charity with satellite offices worldwide. The British Council had its own office in Tehran until February of 2009, when security agents prompted the Council to cease its in-country operations by excessively questioning the employees there.

One of Amiri’s family members previously told the media that her cultural activities have been in concert and alignment with the various branches of the Iranian Ministry of Culture. During the ten years of her residence in the UK, she had repeatedly traveled to Iran without issue.

In recent years, a number of Iranian nationals residing outside of the country have been detained and imprisoned upon returning to Iran. Abbas Edalat, an Iranian-British dual citizen and professor of Mathematics and Computer Science at Imperial College in London, was traveling to Iran for an educational workshop when he was detained and sent to Evin Prison in April 2018.