The large-scale releases of prisoners continued in the past 24 hours, as several prisoners of conscience were released from different prisons across the country. Meanwhile, the case against comedian and parody artist Zeinab Mousavi was closed without further legal proceedings.
Of these freed prisoners, the most known prisoners are:
Political prisoner Akbar Faraji (Farajim) from Evin Prison
Civil rights activist Elvar Gholivand from Evin Prison
Hossein Toyoori, arrested during 2019 protests, from Evin Prison
Mahnaz Tarah from Evin Prison
Dancer and parkour Morteza Ghaderi, a resident of Tehran
Ashkan Omrjooie, a student at the University of Kurdistan, from Urmia
Ahad Barzgar from Rajai Shahr Prison, Karaj
Student Pouya Mazloumi from the Great Tehran Penitentiary
Ramin Pouramin, arrested at recent nationwide protests, from the Great Tehran Penitentiary
Masoud Kurdpour, Mukrian News Agency chief editor, from Bukan Prison
Moreover, the legal case against comedian Zeinab Mousavi, known for her parody character ‘Empress of Kuzcoo’, was announced closed.
Details of these prison releases are still unknown. They are, however, likely released under recent approval to “pardon and commute” the sentence of some prisoners.
Earlier, the head of the Judiciary proposed the issuance of a pardon decree for some prisoners, including those arrested at recent protests, which was approved by Ali Khamenei under some conditions which the legal case should meet.
Recently, the Revolutionary Court of Tehran sentenced student Pouya Mazloumi to five years in prison and additional punishment. Pouya Mazloumi was arrested at protests.
According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists, student Pouya Mazloumi was sentenced to five years in prison on the charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” and “disturbing public order.”
Mazloumi was banned from leaving the country and from political-civil activities on the Internet for two years as additional punishment.
In late September this year, Mazloumi was arrested by security forces and jailed in the Great Tehran Penitentiary.
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.
