Tag: Environmental activists

Environmental Activists Arrested by Security Forces in Tehran

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Environment, Freedom of Expression, News
Environmental activists, Hojjat Kermani, Hooman Jokar, Sima Kashani, Tehran, سپیده کاشانی, هومن جوکار

HRANA – Yesterday, Wednesday, environmental activists Hooman Jokar and his wife, Sepideh Kashani, along with Sima Kashani, were arrested by security forces in Tehran. During the arrests, officers also confiscated their electronic devices.

According to a report by HRANA, citing Emtedad, Sepideh and Sima Kashani, along with Hooman Jokar, were arrested in Tehran.

According to the report, security forces arrested environmental activists Hooman Jokar and his wife, Sepideh Kashani, at their residence this afternoon. Sima Kashani, Sepideh Kashani’s sister, was also arrested by security forces. During the arrests, officers confiscated all of their electronic devices.

The report further quotes attorney Hojjat Kermani as saying: “Given the lengthy holiday ahead and the closure of judicial offices, these arrests have heightened concerns among the families of those detained.”

As of the time of this report, no information is available regarding the agency responsible for the arrests, the reasons for the detentions, or the whereabouts of the three individuals.

Hooman Jokar and Sepideh Kashani, both environmental activists, have previously been arrested and subjected to judicial prosecution in connection with their activism.

Environmental Activists Niloufar Bayani and Hooman Jokar Released After Six-Year Imprisonment

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News, Prisoners
Abdolreza Koohpayeh, Amir-Hossein Khaleghi, Environmental activists, Evin Prison, Gholamhossein Esmaeili, Hooman Jokar, Morad Tahbaz, Niloufar Bayani, Sam Rajabi, Sepideh Kashani, Taher Ghadirian

Environmental activists Niloufar Bayani and Hooman Jokar were granted a pardon and released from Evin Prison on April 8, 2024, marking the end of more than six years of incarceration.

In January 2018, along with several other environmental activists, Bayani and Jokar were detained and held in Evin Prison. Subsequently, Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Salavati, sentenced them to lengthy imprisonments. The sentences were as follows:

  • Niloufar Bayani and Morad Tahbaz received 10 years for “collaboration with the hostile U.S. government.”
  • Taher Ghadirian and Hooman Jokar received eight years for the same charge.
  • Sam Rajabi and Sepideh Kashani received six years for the same charge.
  • Amir-Hossein Khaleghi was sentenced to six years for “espionage.”
  • Abdolreza Koohpayeh received four years for “assembly and collusion against national security.”

On February 18, 2020, Gholamhossein Esmaeili, the then spokesperson of Iran’s Judiciary, reported the finalized verdicts against these eight environmental activists at the Appellate Court.

HRANA had reported that during interrogation, several of these prisoners, including a female, were subjected to mistreatment and sexual assault to extract confessions.