Renowned civil rights advocate Mohammad Nourizad has been sentenced to 61 months in prison as a result of a legal case initiated while he was already incarcerated.
Presently serving his sentence at Evin Prison, Nourizad revealed the additional imprisonment through a voice message from behind bars. The recent court session addressing the new charges against Nourizad took place at the Shahid Kechooie judicial complex in Tehran. Unfortunately, he was unable to defend himself as he was not present during the proceedings.
Details regarding the charges leveled against Nourizad remain undisclosed at this time.
On August 9, 2023, Nourizad faced punitive measures and was relocated to solitary confinement due to his protest against the restriction of prisoners’ telephone cards, impeding their ability to make phone calls.
In a separate legal development from July 2023, Nourizad received an additional two-year prison sentence from the Tehran Revolutionary Court. This sentence stemmed from yet another legal case initiated while he was already in prison.
Nourizad’s legal ordeal began on August 11, 2019, when he was arrested by security forces for participating in the drafting of an open letter with 13 other civil rights activists, calling for the Supreme Leader of Iran to step down. In the initial case, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison, three years of exile in Izeh, and a two-year travel ban. Although the prison sentence was upheld on appeal, the duration of exile and travel ban were reduced to two years.
In late April 2020, Nourizad received an additional one-year imprisonment for expressing support for Baha’i citizens in Eyvanki, Semnan Province.
Concerning the second part of his legal case, the Mashhad Criminal Court sentenced Nourizad to 8 months in prison and 74 lashes, along with exile to Tabas, for “disturbance of public order.” He also received an additional 74 lashes for “spreading falsehood.” This verdict was upheld on appeal as well.
Nourizad was released from Evin Prison on November 17, 2021, based on an early release order. However, on January 23, 2022, he was summoned and re-incarcerated in Evin Prison to serve the remainder of his sentence.
Nourizad has a history of arrests and convictions linked to his peaceful activism. He is a prominent filmmaker, writer, director, and journalist from Iran. While previously known as an outspoken religious journalist, he has become an active critic of the Islamic Republic in recent years.