Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)- Mohammad Davari, a 26-year-old civil rights activist from the city of Yasouj (southwestern Iran) who was arrested by Ministry of Intelligence forces on August 10, 2018, was released around noon local time on August 27th on a 200 million tomans (approximately $20,000 USD) bail pending the completion of the investigation into his case.
Earlier a source close to Davari’s family told HRANA: “Mr Davari was severely beaten in the chest and stomach areas during his interrogation at the Yasouj Intelligence office. As a result, he suffered from severe nausea which led to shortness of breath and consequently, on Monday, August 20th, Mr. Davari vomited blood. He asked twice for medical attention but the authorities refused to transfer him to the prison clinic or a hospital outside the prison.”
Mohammad Davari was held incommunicado in the Yasouj Intelligence office before he was transferred to Yasouj Central Prison. He was previously detained on March 5, 2018, for taking part in widespread popular protests in Iran. He was released eight days later on a 50 million tomans (approximately $10,000 USD) bail. The authorities reportedly told Davari’s family that he was arrested on the charge of “Acting against national security through disturbing the public peace of mind”.
Born in Dehdasht (150 km west of Yasouj), Davari is a Masters student of Political Science. He was arrested another time following the death of Hashemi Rafsanjani when he pulled down a banner bearing Rafsanjani’s photo. He was later released on bail.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Jafar Rostamirad, an Azerbaijani Turkic minority rights activist, has been summoned by Branch 7 of the Prosecutor’s Office, based in Tehran’s Evin Prison, for the last round of his defense statement. He has been given five days to go to the Prosecutor’s Office, a credible source told HRANA.
Rostamirad was arrested on July 2nd by plainclothes security forces in Tehran who did not present a warrant. His arrest was in connection with the Babak Fort gathering that occurred on the same day. After spending seven days in solitary confinement, he was sent to Ward 209 of Evin Prison and charged with “Propaganda against the regime”. He was released on bail on July 31st.
From the *Babak Fort arrests on July 2nd, Ebrahim Noori, an Azerbaijani Turkic minority rights activist, is the only one who remains in prison. He is held in Ward 209 of Evin Prison.
Rostamirad had previously been arrested on February 21, 2015, after taking part in a private meeting to commemorate International Mother Language Day.
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*Babak Fort, a monument built during the pre-Islamic Sassanian period, is named after Babak Khorramdin, known for leading an uprising against the Abbasid caliphate in 893. In recent years, it has become a place of symbolic gatherings for Azerbaijani activists, especially during the annual commemorations in the first week of July.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – On Friday, August 17th, political prisoner Ali Badrkhani’s transfer between the wards of Urmia Central Prison (OCP) quickly devolved into admission at the prison’s medical clinic.
Badrkhani had agreed to end a seven-day hunger strike in exchange for a transfer from solitary confinement back to OCP’s labor ward. A group of about ten violent offenders accosted Badrkhani during the transfer as prison officials stood by and goaded the attackers.
One week earlier, Badrkhani had declared the hunger strike in protest to his transfer to the labor ward, a measure he alleged was disproportionate to his criminal charges, and where he said he experienced harassment at the hands of prison officials. In immediate response to the hunger strike, OCP officials transferred Badrkhani to solitary confinement, where he remained for one week until reaching an agreement with the OCP warden and the judge presiding over his case.
Per the terms of their agreement, Badrkhani was being transferred back to the labor ward when a group of about ten violent offenders intercepted Badrkhani and beat him, bruising his face and injuring his shoulder with a sharp object. He was sent to OCP’s medical clinic for treatment.
The attackers were led by labor ward manager Merhali Farhang, who managed the OCP’s political prisoner ward from 2010 to 2016. During his tenure, Farhang reportedly secured the transfer of several violent prisoners to his ward, in order to intimidate and exert pressure on the inmates under his supervision. Several violent altercations between political prisoners and violent offenders have been attributed to Farhang’s management.
Ali Badrkhani was arrested in the winter of 2015 and released on bail within a few months. Upon his release, he was barred from completing the last semester of his Master’s Degree at the University of Tehran. On March 16, 2017, he was convicted of threatening national security and sentenced to a three-year prison term by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Urmia. He was taken to Ward 3-4 of the OCP to serve his three-year sentence the following spring.
Ali Badrkhani, a.k.a. Shwan, is a Kurdish author who holds dual citizenship of Iran and Iraq. His works include Turkey, Democracy, and the Kurds, Deliberate Discourse, Refugee of Love and Kurdish Folk Tales.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Farhad Ariai Sahrapeyma, a political prisoner in the labor ward of the central prison of Urmia, who has served six years of a seven-year sentence, began a hunger strike on Wednesday, August 15, 2018.
Mr Ariai, who is eligible for early release, began his hunger strike in protest to the court’s refusal to grant him early release and its lack of enforcement of Article 134 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code. Article 134 holds that people convicted of crimes should serve only the term of their most serious sentence instead of the sum total of all of their sentences.
According to an informed source, Mr Ariai was immediately transferred to solitary confinement after beginning his hunger strike. Mr Ariai has previously gone on hunger strike. Last year, he began a hunger strike to protest his deprivation of furlough, after which guards forcefully handcuffed and transferred him to the labor ward in prison, where he has been held since.
Farhad Ariai Shahrapeyma was arrested in December 2012 and charged with “Cooperation with opposition groups” and “Propaganda against the regime”. He was sentenced to a seven-year prison term.
In January 2016, HRANA had published a list of 27 political prisoners and prisoners of conscience who were held in the regular prison wards of Urmia central prison.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Ruhollah Ahura Hedayati, a citizen from the city of Shazand (western Iran), who was previously arrested in October of last year and released on bail after two months, was sentenced to a total of 13 years in prison after being charged with “Propaganda against the regime”, “Membership in groups aimed at undermining the security of the country”, “Blasphemy” and “Insulting religious beliefs and leadership.” Mr Hedayati was sentenced in the First Branch of the Shazand Revolutionary Court, presided by Hassan Hosseini. According to the ruling, in line with Article 134 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, only the most severe sentence should be served.
An informed source told HRANA that Mr Hedayati was charged with “Possession of two grams of a controlled substance”, which carried a cash fine of four million Rials (approximately $83 USD) and a sentence of fifty lashes.
According to the Court, the sentence was issued based on Mr Hedayati’s “clear” confession to attending the celebration of “Cyrus the Great Day” on October 28, 2016, in the city of Shiraz. According to the ruling, the evidence for Mr Hedayati’s presence at the celebration was based on videos and photos taken from the gathering at the tomb of Cyrus, a ruler of ancient Persia, and Mr. Hedayati’s own confessions to writing slogans on the walls and installations of a detention center and Intelligence office in Arak.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Ejlal Ghavami, journalist and human rights activist, was summoned to Branch 2 of the Sanandaj Revolutionary Court (western Iran) in a new case. “I will be tried on November 18th in relation to a previous case, this is another case,” Mr Ghavami said in a note.
Ejlal Ghavami was previously charged with “Propaganda against the regime”, “Speaking to anti-regime media”, “Disseminating lies” and “Insulting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)”. He was acquitted, but upon objections from the Prosecutor, his case was sent to an appeals court.
On June 9, 2018, Mr Ghavami was summoned to the Intelligence office of the IRGC along with Hiwa Rahimi and Ahmad Khalighi, two other civil rights activists from the Kurdistan province. Late last year, he was summoned to Branch 1 of Prosecutor’s office in the Kurdistan province after he was interrogated by the Iranian Cyber Police (FATA). Mr Ghavami was interrogated by FATA in Sanandaj and on Monday, March 25, 2018, he was charged with “Relation and cooperation with anti-regime channels” and “Disseminating lies and illegal contents”.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Jafar Eghdami, a political prisoner who was arrested while attending a gathering in September 2008 commemorating the anniversary of the 1980’s mass executions of political prisoners, was released from Karaj’s Rajai Shahr Prison on August 13th after reaching the end of his 10-year sentence.
Jafar Eghdami was sentenced to five years in prison by branch 28 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, presided by Judge Moghiseh, but his sentence was increased to ten years by an appeals court.
Jafar Shahin Eghdami was previously arrested multiple times by plainclothes and Intelligence forces during the student uprisings in July 1999. He was imprisoned for six years and released in May 2008.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Majid Reza Souzanchi, 34, Christian convert detained in Evin Prison, has received a summons order to appear before Branch 54 of the Tehran Appeals court on December 11, 2018.
He was tried on April 25, 2018, along with Fatemeh Mohammadi for “Membership in Evangelical Groups and Evangelical Activities”, presided by Judge Ahmadzadeh. Mr Souzanchi was sentenced to five years in prison and Ms Mohammadi received a six-month prison sentence on charges of “Engaging in Evangelical activities” and “Acting against national security through propaganda against the regime”.
A source close to the defendants told HRANA that Mr Souzanchi suffered from broken ribs as a result of being beaten up twice during his interrogation by Intelligence Ministry agents. Souzanchi is also worried that his home was searched while he was in prison and some of his personal belongings and family photos were confiscated. He has written several letters [to the authorities] on the matter but has not received any response. In June, his prison cell was raided by agents who confiscated his personal belonging including a notebook in which he had written excerpts from the Bible.
Prison officials refer to Mr Souzanchi as “impure” and “Daeshi” (a member or ISIS). Mr Rostami, the Prosecutor’s representative, had told Mr Souzachi and Ms Mohammadi that “if we were in you Christians’ hands, you would have executed us”. Samad Hadipour, the investigator of Evin court’s Branch 3, referred to the church as a “casino”.
According to the Iranian Constitution, Christianity is a recognized religion. However, security apparatus in Iran are extremely sensitive toward Muslims converting to Christianity, and aggressively pursue evangelist activists.
Article 26 of the Iranian constitution guarantees religious minorities’ rights: “….recognized religious minorities’ associations are free [to exist]…and no one can be forced to participate in these associations or prevented from participating in one of them”.
Hassan Rouhani, Iranian President, during last year’s presidential election campaign stressed the importance of civil rights, and published a “Civil Rights Charter”. However, these promises have not been carried out.
Article 99 of the Charter states: “Citizens have the right to access facilities to participate in cultural life [of their choice], including the right to found associations, perform religious, cultural, and ethnic ceremonies as long as they respect the laws”.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – Mohammad Mozaffari, political activist serving a two-year sentence since June 18, 2018, was conditionally released from Tehran’s Evin Prison. A source close to Mr Mozaffari confirmed his temporary release to HRANA.
According to HRANA, Mr Mozaffari was sentenced on May 3, 2016, by branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, presided by Judge Salavati, to a two-year prison term, a 2,000,000 Tomans cash penalty (approximately $600 USD) and 74 lashes. His lashing sentence was reportedly carried out on August 5, 2018.
Mohammad Mozaffari was arrested on February 15, 2015, and transferred to the Revolutionary Guard’s Intelligence Unit in Evin Prison. After three months of interrogations, he was transferred to Ward 8 of this prison until his release on July 12, 2015.
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) – A summary report on the most recent news of arrests, imprisonment, and executions in Iran from the the last week of July 2018 to August 7, 2018. Iraj Mohammadi and Mohammad Amin Agoushi Released from Tabriz Prison Iraj Mohammadi (left) and Mohammad Amin Agoushi (right)
Political prisoners Iraj Mohammadi and Mohammad Amin Agoushi were released from Tabriz Prison on Sunday, August 5, 2018, following the end of their judicial sentence. In September 2007, Mr Mohammadi and Mr Amin Agoushi were sentenced to a 10-year prison exile term each on the charge of “Acting against national security”.
Last week, HRANA reported on a hunger strike launched by Iraj Mohammadi in objection to the Iranian authorities preventing his release from prison despite reaching the end of his conviction.
Iranian authorities arrested Mohammad Amin Agoushi on September 23, 2007, on the charges of “Espionage” and “Cooperation with Iraqi Kurdistan”. In May 2008, branch 2 of the military court in Urmia charged him with “Moharebeh” (enmity against God) and transferred him to Urmia’s central prison. Four months later, Judge Hafiz Ghaffari sentenced him to death by a firing squad.
In 2010 the retrial request was approved and the case was sent to branch 31 of Iran’s Supreme Court where the sentence was reduced to ten years in prison exile. Iraj Mohammadi and Mohammad Amin Agoushi were transferred to Tabriz Prison from Zahedan in March.
In February 2017 Iraj Mohammadi explained some points in an open letter about rejecting his request for amnesty. Mr Mohammadi emphasized that the mentioned reasons were false, stating that he suffered from nervous and mental illnesses as a result of being held in solitary confinement for eight months and tortured at the onset of his arrest. Sunni Prisoner Yasser Sharafipour Suffers from Medical Neglect
On Friday, August 3, 2018, the chest, abdomen and back of Yaser Sharafipoor, a Sunni prisoner in Karaj’s Rajai Shahr Prison, was burned with hot water.
An informed source told HRANA: “The burn was so severe that he had difficulty breathing. Prison authorities transferred him to the clinic but they only used burn ointment and returned him to the ward. When the prisoner protested, they sent him to the hospital with handcuffs and shackles. Despite the recommendation of the doctors to hospitalize him, he was returned to the prison. Arraignment of Kamal Abdollahi in Urmia Court
Kamal Abdollahi, a citizen from Piranshahr who is held in Urmia’s central prison, was charged with “Acting against national security” by branch 6 of the Urmia Revolutionary Court on Wednesday, August 1, 2018. No information was given to Mr Abdollahi regarding the reason for the charge.
Iranian authorities arrested Mr Abdollahi on May 5, 2018, and held him for three months in a detention center operated by the Ministry of Intelligence in Urmia. Five members of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company Arrested
On the morning of August 5, 2018, drivers of the United Bus Company of Tehran went to the company’s offices to track their housing situation in connection with issues such as the lack of delivery of housing to members despite paying all the agreed amounts in the contract. When they arrived, they were not allowed to enter, which sparked a protest that was cracked down by police forces. During the crackdown, five members of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company were arrested. The individuals are Hassan Saeedi, Davood Razavi, Atta Babakhani, Ali Ghorbanian and an unidentified person.
A close source tells HRANA: “Their detention was a result of a request by Mr Sanandaji, the President of the company. Members of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company gathered in front of branch 4 of Tehran’s security offices to support their detained colleagues until their release.”
The five workers were reportedly released hours after they were detained. Intelligence Agents Arrest Young Man from Zarabad
According to HRANA’s sources and the Baloch Activists Campaign, a 35-year-old man by the name of Abdul Latif Miran Zehi was arrested by Intelligence agents on August 2, 2018, and transferred to Chabahar Prison.
An informed source said: “Abdul Latif Miran Zehi was getting his hair cut at a salon in Zarabad when he was arrested, handcuffed and taken by Intelligence agents who did not present an arrest warrant.”
No information about the reason for his arrest is available at this time and Mr Miran Zehi’s family is unaware of his condition following his arrest.
On May 25, 2018, a 23-year-old man by the name of Abdul Ghani Miran Zehi was arrested by Intelligence agents. Gonabadi Dervish Maryam Farsiyabi Sentenced to Six Months in Prison
According to close sources and the Sufi news website Majzooban-e Noor, Maryam Farsiyabi, a Gonabadi Dervish, who is detained in Charchak Prison in Varamin, was sentenced to six months in prison and a two-year travel ban by branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court.
Ms Farsiyabi was arrested on February 20, 2018, during the “Golestan 7th Avenue Event” which she attended with her husband, Mohammad Karimayee, and hundreds of other Gonabadi Dervishes.
Ms Farsiyabi was beaten by Iranian authorities to the point that she suffered from a fracture to her hand and her jaw was dislocated.
Mr Karimayee was recently sentenced to seven years in prison by the Tehran Revolutionary Court.
Maryam Farsiyabi, along with other women Dervish prisoners, launched a hunger strike on June 15, 2018, in protest of a violent attack by the guards. They ended their hunger strike on June 30, 2018. Mohammad Mozaffari lashed 74 times in Evin Prison
The 74 lashings sentence for Mohammad Mozaffari was reportedly carried out in Evin Prison on Sunday, August 5, 2018. Mr Mozaffari is a political activist who was sentenced to two years in prison, 74 lashes and a 20,000,000 Rial [approximately $200 USD] fine on the charge of “Propaganda against the regime”. The sentence was issued by Abolqasem Salavati, a judge in branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court.
On June 18, 2018, Mohammad Mozaffari was sent to Evin Prison to serve his two-year sentence.
Mr Mozaffari’s lawyers objected to his judicial sentence and the case was referred to the appeals court. Mr Mozaffari’s sentence was upheld by branch 36 of the Tehran Appeals Court. Four prisoners were executed in Minab and Bandar Abbas
Iranian official sources have reported on the execution of three prisoners in Minab Prison on rape charges. The executions were reportedly carried out on the morning of Wednesday, August 8, 2018. According to an Iranian state-run news agency, the unidentified prisoners were accused of kidnapping and raping a woman in 2016 in the city of Minab.
Minab is one of the eastern cities of the Hormozgan province in southern Iran. Prisoner at Bandar Abbas Central Prison Executed
On the morning of Tuesday, August 7, 2018, a prisoner convicted of “Murder” was reportedly executed in Bandar Abbas’s central prison. The prisoner, who has been identified as 46-year-old Amir Ali Kolivand, was arrested in June 2014.
Mr Kolivand was transferred from Haji Abad Prison to Bandar Abbas’s central prison on Monday, August 6. Haji Abad is the northernmost city of the Hormozgan province and is located near the Kerman province.
Regarding Mr Kolivand’s case, an informed told HRANA: “Amir Ali Kolivand was also charged with trafficking 5 kilograms of crystal meth, but he was executed on the charge of killing a bus driver.”
Mr Kolivand’s execution has not been announced by Iranian official sources.
According to Amnesty International’s annual report, Iran, in proportion to population per capita and executions, ranks first in the world in executions.
An annual report published by the Center of Statistics at Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI) states that more than 60% of executions in Iran are not reported by the state or the Judiciary. These executions are considered “secret executions”.
According to registered data from 2,945 reports by the Statistics, Publications and Achievements Division of HRAI, in the past year (from March 21, 2017, to March 18, 2018), at least 322 citizens were executed and 236 others were sentenced to death in Iran. Among these, there was the execution of four juvenile offenders and 23 public hangings. Baha’i Citizen in Yazd Arrested
Mehran Bandi Amirabadi, a Bahai citizen, was arrested without a warrant by security forces on Tuesday, August 7, 2018, in the city of Yazd (conservative religious capital of the Yazd province).
A close source confirmed the news and told HRANA: “At noon, security forces arrested Mehran Bandi Amirabadi at his workplace.”
Mr Amirabadi was tried with six other Bahai citizens in branch 3 of the Yazd Appeals Court. Mr Amirabadi was sentenced to one and a half years in prison and one year in exile in Divandareh (a remote city in the Kurdistan province).
Iranian Baha’i citizens are systematically deprived of religious freedoms, while according to Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, everyone is entitled to the right to freedom of religion and belief, and the right to adopt and manifest the religion of their choice either individually, in public or in private.
Based on unofficial sources, more than 300,000 Baha’is live in Iran. However, Iran’s Constitution only recognizes Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism and denies recognizing the Baha’i faith as an official religion. Consequently, the rights of Baha’is are systematically violated in Iran. Political Activist Mokhtar Zarei Temporarily Released from Prison
According to close sources and the Kurdistan Center for Democracy and Human Rights, political prisoner Mokhtar Zarei was temporarily released on bail from Sanandaj Prison on Tuesday, August 7, 2018, after 17 days of detention.
Mr Zarei was reportedly arrested on Saturday, July 23, 2018, and summoned to court.
A few days before his arrest, Mr Zarei claimed the reason for his arrest is his criticisms against Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, and the human rights violations in Iran. Environmental Activist Yousef Farhadi Babadi Summoned to Court
Environmental activist Yousef Farhadi Babadi was reportedly summoned to branch 118 of the Isfahan Criminal Court regarding Dr Abedi’s (parliament representative of Isfahan) lawsuit. Mr Babadi was released on bail from Isfahan prison on March 12, 2018.
On March 5, 2018, Mr Babadi received a subpoena and a call from the Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province’s prosecutor’s office regarding his publication in a social media channel called “Sound of Water”, which mainly criticized the water situation in Iran. This subpoena was issued to him based on the charge of “Disseminating lies and disturbing public opinion in cyberspace”. A Civil Rights Activist in Marivan and Two Others in Oshnavieh Arrested by Intelligence Agents, Transferred to Unknown Location
According to close sources and the Kurdistan Center for Democracy and Human Rights, in the last week of July 2018, Marivan intelligence agents arrested Arman Ghafouri, civil rights and environmental activist, and transferred him to an undisclosed location. Mr Ghafouri’s family has not been able to obtain any precise information about the reason for his arrest or the location where he is being held.
Previously, Armin Ghafouri and eight other civil rights activists were arrested on March 12, 2018, and interrogated by Iranian authorities regarding their participation in a gathering condemning the “Turkish military operation of Afrin”. army’s attack on the Afrin city”. They were subsequently released on bail.
During the past few days, Kamel Ahmadi and Tayyeb Bamorovat were arrested by Intelligence agents for the charge of “Cooperation with a Kurdish opposition party” and transferred to an unknown location. A total of seven citizens from Oshnavieh have been arrested for the same charge and the identity of only five of them has been identified thus far.
