Lawyer Mohammadreza Faghihi Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison and Additional Restrictions

The Tehran Court of Appeals, Branch 36, has upheld the prison sentence and additional restrictions imposed on attorney Mohammadreza Faghihi. The initial ruling, issued by the preliminary court, sentenced Faghihi to five years in prison, a two-year travel ban, and a two-year prohibition from practicing law and participating in political groups.

The recent appellate ruling maintains these penalties, convicting Mr. Faghihi on charges of “assembly and collusion to act against national security.” In addition to the prison term, he faces a two-year ban on leaving the country, a two-year suspension from practicing law, and a two-year prohibition from participating in political organizations. The verdict was delivered to Faghihi’s legal team on November 4, and the case has since been sent to the enforcement branch for execution.

This decision echoes an earlier ruling from Branch 15 of Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Court, which imposed the same penalties.

Faghihi’s legal troubles trace back to October 12, 2022, when he, along with two other attorneys, was arrested by security forces during a protest held by lawyers outside the Central Bar Association in Argentina Square, Tehran. The protest called attention to the “violation of protesters’ rights and Article 27 of the Constitution.” Faghihi was released on bail on October 25, 2022, but has since faced additional legal challenges.

Mr. Faghihi has a prior history of arrests and convictions linked to his professional advocacy activities.

Mohammadreza Faghihi Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison and Additional Punishments

Mohammadreza Faghihi, a defense attorney, has been sentenced by Branch 15 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court to five years in prison. Additionally, he has been sentenced to a two-year travel ban, a two-year prohibition from practicing law, and a two-year ban on membership in political parties and groups.

Zahra Minooie, Mr. Faghihi’s defense attorney, announced: “My client was sentenced by Branch 15 of Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Court to five years in prison on charges of ‘collusion and assembly with the intent to commit a crime against national security.’ As additional punishment, he has also been banned from leaving the country for two years, from practicing law, and from membership in political parties and groups for two years.”
The court session addressing the charges against this lawyer was held on September 11 of this year.

Previously, on October 12, 2022, Mohammadreza Faghihi was arrested by security forces, along with two other lawyers, during a protest by defense attorneys objecting to the “violation of protesters’ rights and Article 27 of the Constitution” in front of the Central Bar Association in Argentina Square, Tehran. He was eventually released on bail on October 25, 2022.

This attorney has a prior record of arrest and sentencing due to his professional activities.

A Comprehensive Report of the First 82 days of Nationwide Protests in Iran

  HRANA – Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old young woman, was arrested by the morality police for the crime of improper hijab. Her arrest and death in detention fueled nationwide protests in Iran. Protesters came to the streets with the central slogan “Women, Life, Freedom” in protest against the performance, laws, and structure of the regime. The following 486-page report is dedicated to the statistical review, analysis, and summary of the first eighty-two days of the ongoing protests (September 17 to December 7, 2022). In this report, in addition to the geographic analysis and the presentation of maps and charts, the identity of 481 deceased, including 68 children and teenagers, an estimated of 18,242 arrested along with the identity of 3,670 arrested citizens, 605 students and 61 journalists or activists in the field of information is compiled. In addition, the report includes a complete collection of 1988 verified video reports by date and topic. The report examines protests across 1115 documented gatherings in all 31 provinces of the country, including 160 cities and 143 universities.

Summary

Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, a young 22-year-old woman from Saqqez, Kurdistan was visiting Tehran, when she was taken into custody on Tuesday, September 13, 2022, by the Morality Police officers at the Haqqani metro station in Tehran. The reason for her arrest: not properly observing the strict Islamic dress code. Mahsa/Zhina was taken to the infamous detention center of Moral Security Police known as Vozara.
Shortly after Mahsa’s arrest, she went into a coma with level three concussion, and her partially alive body was transferred to the intensive care unit of Kasra Hospital. Given the track record of the police and Guidance Patrols in mistreating the arrestees and similar previous incidents, with the believe that Mahsa was beaten during the arrest people were outraged.

Download full report in PDF format

Unpersuasive explanations given by the Central Command of the Islamic Republic Police Force (FARAJA) in defense of its actions regarding the death of Mahsa, the past performance of the police force, along with widespread dissatisfaction with the existence of a body called the Moral Security Police, fueled widespread protests in Iran.
The widespread protests sparked at the time Mahsa Amini was announced dead in front of Kasra Hospital on Argentina Street in Tehran, and then quickly spread to the streets despite the intimidating presence of Iran’s security forces. The protests intensified after Mahsa’s burial in a Saqqez cemetery. To the extent that after eighty-two days of nationwide protests between September 17, 2022, to December 7, 2022, they have spread to Iran’s all 31 provinces, 160 cities, and 143 major universities.
The protests did not stay limited to Mahsa’s death, it rather, quickly targeted the Iranian government’s political and ideological foundations. These protests were violently quashed by the anti-riot police and Iran’s militia force (Basij). teargas, pellets, and live ammunition were used in the repression of protestors. This widespread crackdown has led to the death of dozens of people and the wounding of hundreds of protestors.
Despite sever communication restrictions imposed by the Islamic Republic, this report attempts to give a clearer picture of the first 82 days of the protests between September 17, to December 7, 2022. It’s worth mentioning at the time of this report the protests are still ongoing in various forms.

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