Tag: Baktash Abtin

Update on Reza Khandan Mahabadi’s Condition in Evin Prison

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News, Prisoners
Baktash Abtin, Evin Prison, Iranian Writers Association, Reza Khandan Mahabadi

Writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association (IWA) Reza Khandan Mahabadi is currently serving a five-year sentence in Evin Prison since September 2019.

An informed source told HRANA that Khandan is suffering from heart disease and is being held in Ward 8 of Evin Prison. On December 21, 2021, h was hospitalized outside the prison after he contracted COVID-19. On January 8, 2021, another well-known writer, Baktash Abtin died of Covid-19  due to negligence.

Mahabadi was sentenced on May 15, 2019, by Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Mohammad Moghayeseh. His sentence included one year in prison on the charge of “propaganda against the regime” and five years on the charge of “assembly and collusion with the intention of acting against national security”. On September 26, 2020, he was arrested and sent to Evin Prison to serve his sentence.

Mahabadi’s career as a writer kicked off in 1978 with the publication of his book “Local Children”. Some of his publications include “Nothing Comes Out of the Sack, ExceptWhat Was In It”, a seven-volume story collection called “My Favorite Stories”, a collection of research titled “Razi War”, and the 19-volume fiction collection “Encyclopedia of Iranian Legends and Fairy Tales” (co-author Ali Ashraf Darvishian).

Keyvan Bazhan Released on Furlough Connecting to End of Sentence

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News, Prisoners
Baktash Abtin, Dariush Forouhar, Iranian Writers Association, Keyvan Bazhan, Mohammad Ja'far Pouyandeh, Mohammad Mokhtari, Parvaneh Eskandari, Reza Khandan

On March 9, Keyvan Bazhan, writer and a member of the Iranian Writers’ Association was released from Evin Prison on furlough. By the end of the furlough period, he will have served his sentence and hence will not return to prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Bazhan, has been imprisoned since October 2020. On May 7, 2015, Bazhan was summoned by Branch 12 of the Court of Culture and Media along with Reza Khandan and the deceased Baktash Abtin, where they were interrogated and accused of “propaganda against the regime”. On January 22, 2019, they were arrested during an appearance at Branch 28 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court. Due to an increase in bail to one billion tomans and their inability to post bail, they were jailed in Evin Prison. Four days later, Bazhan was released on bail until the end of legal proceedings.

On April 27 and 28 of 2019, the first court session was held by Branch 28 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court. The court, headed by Judge Mohammad Moghayeseh, sentenced him to one year in prison on the charge of “propaganda against the regime” and five years on the charge of “assembly and collusion against national security”. On September 26, 2020, he was sent to Evin Prison to serve his sentence.

In the trial, examples for the above-mentioned charged included Bazhan’s membership in the IWA, as well as publishing the internal newsletter for IWA, collecting and authoring a book about the history of IWA and visiting the burial place of the writers who were killed during the Chain murders of Iran, such as Mohammad Mokhtari and Mohammad-Ja’far Pouyandeh.

The IWA is an independent group of authors, poets, editors and translators based in Iran which was formed in May 1968 to fight against state censorship. The government has continuously persecuted members of the IWA after the 1979 revolution. In 1998, several IWA members, including opposition politicians Dariush Forouhar and his wife Parvaneh Eskandari, and writers Mohammad Mokhtari and Mohammad-Ja’far Pouyandeh, were murdered.

Baktash Abtin, Jailed Writer and Poet, Dies of COVID-19

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Freedom of Expression, News, Prisoners
Baktash Abtin, Coronavirus, COVID, IWA, Lack of medical care in prison

On January 8, Baktash Abtin, a prisoner of conscience, writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association (IWA), died of COVID-19 in the hospital. On December 6, 2021, after showing severe COVID-19 symptoms, he was dispatched from Evin Prison to a hospital in Tehran. After a few days, he was sent to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) as his condition deteriorated and his life was threatened.

In an open statement, IWA called the regime responsible for Abtin’s critical health condition by denying him adequate and on-time medical treatment and hospitalization.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Abtin was a poet, filmmaker and writer. The IWA expressed grave concern for his wellbeing, stating that “the regime is responsible for whatever happens to the imprisoned writers, especially Baktash Abtin. The regime has deliberately endangered the life of political prisoners. They have to be set free before it is too late, especially that we all know that they are innocent of any wrongdoing and deserve no punishment whatsoever”.

In reaction to his death, in a new statement, IWA called it a murder committed by the regime and stated:

“On December 3, with the onset of clear COVID-19 symptoms, Baktash Abtin went to Evin [Prison’s] healthcare. However, he did not receive any treatment. After three days, when his health condition worsened, prison officials had to dispatch him to a hospital overnight without informing his family.”

Abtin’s death prompted a wave of reactions from social media, news outlets and human rights organizations. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) stated: “The writer and journalist had been unjustly sentenced to 6 years in prison and was in detention in hospital, ill with COVID-19 & deprived of the necessary care. RSF blames the high regime’s authorities for his death.”

Abtin was in Evin Prison where he contracted COVID-19. On May 15, 2019, Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran sentenced him to one year in prison on the charge of “propaganda against the regime” and 5 years on the charge of “assembly and collusion to act against the national security”. On September 26, 2020, along with two other IWA members, he was sent to Evin Prison to serve his sentence.

The IWA is an independent group of authors, poets, editors and translators based in Iran which was formed in May 1968 to fight against state censorship. The government has continuously persecuted members of the IWA after the 1979 revolution. In 1998, several IWA members, including opposition politicians Dariush Forouhar and his wife Parvaneh Eskandari, and writers Mohammad Mokhtari and Mohammad Jafar Pouyandeh, were murdered.

Reza Khandan Mahabadi Contracts COVID-19, Is Dispatched to Hospital

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News, Prisoners
Baktash Abtin, Coronavirus, covid-19, COVID-19 in Iran, Iranian Writers Association, prisoner of conscience, propaganda against the regime, Reza Khandan, Reza Khandan (Mahabadi), Reza Khandan Mahabadi

On December 21, Reza Khandan Mahabadi, a prisoner of conscience, writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association (IWA) was dispatched from Evin Prison to a hospital outside the prison after his COVID-19 symptoms worsened. Earlier, he and another prisoner of conscience, Baktash Abtin, tested positive. This has raised alarms about the spread of the virus amongst prisoners in Evin Prison.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, Mahabadi was hospitalized due to a high fever and other severe symptoms. Abtin was hospitalized earlier in Tehran due to poor health and COVID-19 symptoms.

Mahabadi  was sentenced on May 15, 2019 by Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Mohmmad Mohammad Moghayeseh. His sentence included one year in prison on the charge of “propaganda against the regime” and five years on the charge of “assembly and collusion with the intention of acting against national security”. On September 26, 2020, he was arrested and sent to Evin Prison to serve his sentence.

Mahabadi’s career as a writer kicked off in 1978 with the publication of his book “Local Children”. Some of his works include “Nothing Comes Out of the Sack, But What Was In It”, a seven-volume story collection called “My Favorite Stories”, a collection of research titled “Razi War”, and the 19-volume tale collection “Encyclopedia of Iranian Legends and Fairy Tales” (co-author Ali Ashraf Darvishian).

Sydney Pen Association Demands Immediate Release of Reza Khandan Mahabadi, Baktash Abtin and Keyvan Bazhan from Evin Prison

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Freedom of Expression, Prisoners
Baktash Abtin, Ebrahim Raisi, Evin, Evin Prison, Keyvan Bazhan, Mark Isaac, medical neglect, medical negligence, Reza Khandan Mahabadi, Sydney Pen Association, Tehran, Writers' Association of Iran

On Sunday, June 20, the Sydney Pen Association in Australia issued a statement in light of Ebrahim Ra’isi’s election as next President of the Islamic Republic.

According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, quoting the Writers’ Association of Iran, the statement calls for the immediate release of Reza Khandan Mahabadi, Baktash Abtin and Keyvan Bazhan, currently being held in Evin prison for their writings critical of the State. All three authors are members of the Writers’ Association of Iran, and each has published several books on Iranian history, sociology, and literature.

“The three authors need medical attention and authorities have not taken any of them to hospital,” the statement says.

In April, Baktash Abtin’s lawyer announced that his client had contracted COVID but had not received the necessary treatment. Reza Khandan Mahabadi suffers from osteoarthritis of the neck and Keyvan Bazhan has a thyroid disease. Penn Sydney was recently informed by inmates that another wave of coronavirus has spread to Evin Prison, further endangering the lives of its inmates.

The writers were first sentenced to imprisonment when now-president-elect Ebrahim Ra’isi was head of the judiciary on charges of propaganda against the Islamic Republic and acting against national security. They were also accused of attending the graves of disgruntled poets and writers and critics of the regime.

The prosecution cited the publication of a book on the history of the Writers’ Association of Iran, an institution that has criticized Iran’s past and present governments for decades, and the defendants were sentenced to a total of 18 years in prison by the Revolutionary Court of Tehran.

In January 2019, an appeals court in Tehran reduced the sentence to a total of 15 years and six months in prison. Baktash Abtin and Reza Khandan Mahabadi were sentenced to six years in prison each, and Keyvan Bazhan was sentenced to three years and six months.

Abtin, Khandan Mahabadi and Bazhan were arrested on October 26 of last year, after attending the Judgment Enforcement Unit of the Evin Court, and  were transferred to the infamous Evin Prison to serve out their sentences.

The statement cites a joint text by Reza Khandan Mahabadi, Baktash Abtin and Keyvan Bajan, which was issued from inside the prison on June 6, 2021.

Below is an excerpt from their text:

 

We are addressing all writers and libertarians who have made “freedom of expression everywhere and for all” the focus of their human endeavors. This is the demand that the historical-global movement for freedom of expression has practically and always pursued. The Writers’ Association of Iran, of which we are three members, has been active as part of this movement for more than half a century; A movement that must be enhanced by its power and volume; Because apart from the daily threat of freedom of expression by the ruling powers, many people in the world are completely deprived of it; Including writers and people of Iran. We are currently in prison, and according to the sentence, we have to endure a total of 13 and a half years in prison because we are writers who oppose censorship and demand freedom of expression without exception. We are not the first prisoners and oppressed of this movement and we will not be the last until “freedom of expression everywhere and for everyone” is achieved.

 

Reza Khandan Mahabadi, Baktash Abtin, Keyvan Bazhan

 

Bektash Abtin concluded in his story to Sydney Pen Association president Mark Isaac,  “Freedom is never given to anyone on a gold tray; it comes at a high price. In a country like Iran, death very easily finds intellectuals, libertarians and those who fight for freedom of expression. We are not worried about the trial and the prison and its difficulties, because we have made our decision.”

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

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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.

Three Board Members of the Iranian Writers Association (IWA) were Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison

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Freedom of Expression
Baktash Abtin, Iranian Writers Association, Keyvan Bajan, Reza Khandan Mahabadi

Baktash Abtin, Reza Khandan Mahabadi, and Keyvan Bajan were charged with “propaganda against the state” and “assembly and collusion against national security.” They were sentenced to 18 years in prison, combined.

The trial of the three writers was held earlier at Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court. They were arrested on January 22, 2019 after being subpoenaed on the “encouraging immorality or prostitution” and security-related charges. They were released from Evin prison a few days after on bail.

The trial led by Judge Moghiseh at the Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court sentenced Baktash Abtin, Reza Khandan Mahabadi, and Keyvan Bajan were sentenced to one-year imprisonment for “propaganda against the state” and to five years imprisonment for “assembly and collusion against national security”. Their attorneys, Naser Zarafshan and Razieh Zeidi were informed of the verdict. In an announcement, the Iranian Writers Association (IWA) has condemned the verdict.

The IWA was an independent group of authors, poets, editors and translators based in Iran which was formed in May 1968 to fight against state censorship. Government have continuously persecuted its members after Islamic revoloution. In 1998, several IWA members, including opposition politicians, Dariush Forouhar and his wife Parvaneh Eskandari, and writers Mohammad Mokhtari and Mohammad Jafar Pouyandeh were murdered.

An investigation concluded that the murders had been carried out by authorities of the Intelligence Ministry. A number of ministry officials were arrested, and information about the murders was leaked to the media. During a judicial inquiry, the prosecution confirmed that the chain murders were part of a systematic policy to physically eliminate political and cultural dissidents of Iran.

 

A Daily Overview of Human Rights Violations in Iran for January 30, 2019

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Alireza Kafaei, Baktash Abtin, Baloch, Baneh, Behbahan, Construction Worker, Environmentalist, Farhangian University, Ghomishloo National Park, Hassan Hassanzadeh, hassan peyghami, Karun, Keyvan Bazhan, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Kulbar, Mohammad Karimi, North Khorasan province, Poachers, Reza Khandan (Mahabadi), Saman Salehi, Sammy Rashidi, Sistan and Baluchestan, Supreme Court, Teachers, Violence Against Women, worker, Yousef Shahouzehi

The following is an overview of human rights violations in Iran on January 30th, 2019 based on the information compiled and verified by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

(1) More than five protests were organized across the country on January 30, 2019. The workers of Ahvaz inter-city rail, taxi drivers in Bukan, the customers of SAIPA and IranKhodro companies, the environmental activists in Behbahan, and the employees of Railway Services and Technical Construction Engineering Company (RSTC), have held separate protests to request their demands.

(2) A 27-year old was tried in absentia and sentenced to three years in prison and 74 lashes for “stealing a chicken” in Laly city in Khuzestan province.

(3) A retired teacher, Alireza Kafaei, was arrested in Gachsaran on January 29, 2019. The leader of Islamic Association of Teachers of Gachsaran is suffering from diabetes and severe heart disease. He was released on bail earlier today.

(4) Three Kulbars (Kurdish back carrier) died or were injured in Salmas and Baneh. Saman Salehi and Mohammad Karimi were killed after the Iranian border patrol opened fire to a group of Kulbars. Another Kulbar, Sammy Rashidi, was injured in another accident.

(5) A prisoner was executed in Noor prison on the charge of murder. Two prisoners, Hashem Badrkhani and Houshang Hosseini who were accused of murder, were spared from hanging on gallows by consent of next of kin in Bandar Abbas.

(6) Jafar Azimzadeh was transferred to Evin prison to serve his six years prison sentence. Azimzadeh and Parvin Mohammadi, the members of the Free Union of workers in Iran, were arrested on January 29.

(7) Three poachers have been arrested in Ghomishloo National Park in the Najafabad county in Isfahan province.

(8) The court was in session for eight environmentalists in Tehran without their lawyers on the espionage-related charges. Moreover, five of the detained environmental activists were charged with “corruption on earth”.

(9) A Baloch citizen, Yousef Shahouzehi, was arrested for an unknown reason in Nik Shahr county in Sistan and Baluchestan. His whereabouts is still unknown.

(10) Keyvan Bazhan, a writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association, was released on bail. He was arrested along with two other writers, Baktash Abtin and Reza Khandan Mehrabadi on January 22 on the charge of “encouraging immorality or prostitution”.

(11) Five senior managers of North Khorasan University of Medical Science were flogged on financial-related charges in this university. The head of North Khorasan Justice department confirmed that and added that the court cases fillings have been increasing by 14 percent in the last ten months.

(12) Hassan Hassanzadeh and Hassan Peyghami were released from Urmia prison after completing their prison sentences. They were sentenced to two-year prison term in exile on the charge of “cooperation with the opposition groups” and “acting against national security”.

(13) The school’s roof collapsed due to rains in Pashbard village in Sardasht county in the West Azerbaijan province. Students temporarily use a “conex [shipping container] school “.

(14) The head of Hamadan Mental Health Department & Prevent announced the launch of a campaign to end violence against women such as preventing domestic violence.

(15) The workers of Sisakht municipality in the Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province have two months of unpaid wages. In addition, more than half a million construction workers are not covered by insurance in Iran.

(16) An authority of Farhangian University, Mansour Nikpanah, confirmed the teacher shortage of 14 thousand in Sistan and Baluchestan province.

(17) Six police officers appeal of death penalty conviction was accepted by the Supreme Court. They have been indicted on a murder charge in the killing of three young men.

A Daily Overview of Human Rights Violations in Iran for January 28, 2019

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Abubakr Minapak, Ali Nejati, Ayoub Bahramnejad, Baha'i, Baktash Abtin, Esmail Ebrahimi viniche, Farzad Rouhani Manshadi, Hossein Balkhkanlou Aghdam, Kamel Ahmadi, Keyvan Bazhan, Koroush Azizi, Kulbar, Mehdi Gholian, Mohammad Amin Ghazi, Mostafa Mostafavi, Neda Shabani, Reza Khandan Mehrabadi, Saeed Parham, Sepideh Gholian, Tayeb Bamorovat, Yousef Ahmadi

The following is an overview of human rights violations in Iran on January 28th, 2019 based on the information compiled and verified by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

(1) More than six protests were organized across the country. Several residents of Khash in Sistan and Balouchestan province, the customers of SAIPA and IranKhodro in Tehran, the municipality workers in Borujerd, the students of Farhanigian University in Tehran, bus drivers in Mashhad, and the workers of Dashtestan Rural Water Association have held separate protests to request their demands.

(2) A Kulbar (Kurdish back carrier), Hossein Balkhkanlou Aghdam, was killed after the Iranian border patrol opened fire to a group of Kulbars near Maku. Moreover, a landmine explosion injured two Kulbars in Baneh.

(3) A Baha’i citizen, Neda Shabani, was released on bail. Shabani and Soroush Agahi have been arrested in Karaj on November 28, 2018. Baha’i is Iran’s largest non-Muslim minority and are systematically persecuted by the government.

(4) Ali Nejati, labor activist, was released on bail. The former leader of the Syndicate of Workers of Haft Tapeh Sugar Cane was arrested on November 29th, 2018. He was charged with “disrupting public order” and “propaganda against the state” through protesting.

(5) A person accused of murdering Saeed Parham, a park ranger in Shirvan, was sentenced to death after eight years.

(6) The court was in session for seven people, on the charge of “cooperation with a Kurdish opposition group” in Oshnavieh. They are identified as Koroush Azizi, Abubakr Minapak, Yousef Ahmadi, Kamel Ahmadi, Mohammad Amin Ghazi, Ayoub Bahramnejad, Tayeb Bamorovat.

(7) The workers of Parsefid abattoir in Amol, South Pars Petrochemical Industry, and HEPCO Company have at least three months of unpaid wages.

(8) A convict in the Golestan province received an alternate sentence for imprisonment. He is sentenced to plant a hundred trees in forest such as oak, maple, and hornbeam.

(9) Mehdi Gholian was released on bail. He was beaten and arrested because he asked for injunction from the security forces who raided his parents’ house to arrest his sister, Sepideh Gholian.

(10) A Baha’i citizen living in Yazd was arrested on January 28, 2019. Farzad Rouhani Manshadi, was sentenced along six other Baha’i citizens to three-year suspended prison term earlier in August 2018.

(11) In a bus rollover at the Bonab Islamic Azad University, six students were injured on January 28.

(12) An anti-addiction activist, Esmail Ebrahimi Viniche, was arrested for an unknown reason on January 16 and has been detained in Isfahan’s Dasgerd prison. He works in an addiction recovery center in Isfahan.

(13) Mostafa Mostafavi was transferred to Urmia prison after 27 days of being held in solitary confinement and interrogation in the Intelligence Office detention center.

(14) Baktash Abtin, a writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association, was released on bail. He was arrested along with two other writers, Keyvan Bazhan and Reza Khandan Mehrabadi on January 22 on the charge of “encouraging immorality or prostitution”.

(15) Two workers died and two others were injured in Tehran, Arak, and Dezful because of negligence in the oversight of safety conditions in their workplaces. Iran ranked 102 in the workplace safety among other countries.

(16) Amir Nosratkhah was executed in the Zanjan prison on the charge of murder. Moreover, three prisoners accused of murder, were spared from hanging on gallows by consent of next of kin in Zanjan and Sirvan.

(17) Razgar Mohammadi, Yousef Rasouli, Adel Bakhshvari, and Mousa Esmaili were arrested in Piranshahr on the charge of “cooperation with a Kurdish opposition group”. Their whereabouts are still unknown.

A Daily Overview of Human Rights Violations in Iran for January 26, 2019

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Akam Ghaderi, Ali Varmarzyar, Baktash Abtin, Bushehr, Esmail Bakhshi, Farshid Feizollahi, Hossin Rezaei, Iranshahr University Medical Science, Keyvan Bazhan, Khuzestan, Maziyar Seyyednejad, Mehran Mohammadi, Reza Khandan (Mahabadi), Sepideh Gholian, Walid Zubaidi

The following is an overview of human rights violations in Iran on January 26th, 2019 based on the information compiled and verified by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

(1) Ali Varmarzyar, a seventh-grade student in Hamadan, was transferred to a hospital after being beaten by his teacher. The student’s left hand was injured in this incident.

(2) After being detained for almost two months, Maziyar Seyyednejad, a labor activist, has a bond set to be released on bail. He was arrested during Khuzestan workers’ protests on December 1st and was transferred to an unknown place.

(3) Hossein Rezaei, a teacher and the secretary of the teachers’ union in Bushehr, was arrested earlier today and transferred to an unknown place. He had been summoned twice to the intelligence office and was interrogated in the last week.

(4) Four elementary students were injured in a school vehicle roll over incident near Mashhad. Three girls and a boy were transferred to hospital.

(5) Three citizens, Farshid Feizollahi, Mehran Mohammadi, and Akam Ghaderi were arrested separately in Sanandaj and Bukan and their whereabouts are unknown. They are accused of ‘cooperation with a Kurdish opposition group’.

(6) More than 13 thousand people have lost their lives in traffic-related accidents in the past nine months. This marks a 0.7 percent increase compared to the last year. The majority of accidents have been reported in Fars, Isfahan, and Tehran provinces.

(7) An Arab citizen, 27-year-old Walid Zubaidi, was arrested on Thursday in Ramshir city. His whereabouts and the reason of his arrest are still unknown.

(8) The head of the Department of Environment in Kiasar city in Mazandaran province announced that two poachers were arrested and carcasses of two Caspian red deer were confiscated from them.

(9) Reza Khandan Mahabadi, a writer and member of the Iranian Writers Association, was released on bail. He was arrested along with two other writers, Keyvan Bazhan and Baktash Abtin on January 22. Their charge is “encouraging immorality or prostitution”.

(10) Five construction workers were injured in Chabahar city because of negligence in the oversight of safety conditions in the workplace. Chabahar is in Sistan and Baluchestan Province.

(11) More than 700 artists who had gathered at the Theater Forum’s venue in Tehran, signed a letter condemning the mass arrest of theater artists and directors by the judicial system. 

(12) The director of the Iranshahr University of Medical Sciences announced that a Ringworm outbreak has been observed among students in Shamsabad village in Iranshahr. He added that this disease is highly contiguous and is caused by unhygienic lifestyle.

(13) More than 800 people have signed a statement in which they expressed their concerns for Esmail Bakhshi and Sepideh Gholian conditions and requested their immediate release. They were rearrested after the broadcast of their confessions on the national television.