May 20, 2011
RAHANA: There are no reports as to his whereabouts even though 5 days have passed since his arrest.
According to the Human Rights House of Iran, he was arrested by the security and plainclothes forces while a strike was about to occur at the university.Β He was then taken outside of the university with a car. Despite the follow-ups by his family, there have been no reports as to his whereabouts.
May 20, 2011
Pars Daily News: Islamic Republic Judicial authorities say that on Thursday, May 19, four people were hanged in Yazd. Yazdβs Public Prosecutor stated that these four people accused of rape had been condemned to death. Last year about 252 executions took place in Iran. Without disclosing those individualsβ identities, Jamal Ghezavati added that three of the accused were from one of the villages outside Yazd and were publicly hanged, and the other person was executed at the Yazd Central Prison. According to Mr. Ghezavati, these four people in 2009 and 2010 raped women in Meybod, Tabas, and Yazd. The Provincial Criminal Court voted to sentence them to death.
Mehr News: The Esfahan Public Prosecutor at a press conference personally announced that Abdullah and Mohammad Fathi have been executed at Esfahanβs Dastgerd Prison. He also revealed that three other people accused of stealing weapons have been executed. According to Mehr News, at a press conference Mohammad Reza Habibi stated: βThe five executed arms robbers had a long and dangerous background. Two of them belonged to a ring of gold dealers.β
In referring to the combatant state of these individuals, Habibi emphasized that, βPublished news based on the political aspect of these condemned prisoners and their executions were not accurate. No law refers to the prisoners and their executions as political.β He said that the penalty for stealing weapons is death: βArms robbers psychologically destroy the peopleβs morale, and authorities defending human rights must apply the correct penalty for these crimes. Publishers of such news disturb peopleβs sense of security, and the judicial machine must deal with such individuals.β
May 20, 2011
In the midst of persistent crises gripping the highest levels of the clerical regime, a state-run media outlet has exposed a multi-million dollar embezzlement during the construction of a building in Kish Island.
According to Asr-e Iran on Tuesday, the building was planned for the summit of countries of the non-aligned movement. The paper said Baqai, a deputy of the mullahsβ President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, had paid the contractor roughly $340 million in addition to the initial amount on the contract.
State-run media revealed that the contractor, Fiak Company, was founded by a regime-affiliated individual abroad on the recommendation of Baqai and Mashai, an Ahmadinejad advisor. The company was started by officially declaring $1,000 in its holdings.
May 20, 2011
U.S. Department of State
Press Releases: Concern Over Human Rights Abuses in Iran
Wed, 18 May 2011 20:44:15 -0500
Concern Over Human Rights Abuses in Iran
Press Statement
Mark C. Toner
Acting Deputy SpokesmanWashington, DC
May 18, 2011
The United States is deeply concerned that Iran continues to deny its citizens and other persons within Iran their human rights. Judicial cases, trials, and sentences continue to proceed without transparency and the due process rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Iranβs own constitution. Just this week, two Iranian citizens β Abdollah and Mohammad Fathi β were executed amid serious questions about whether these prisoners were granted their rights. We are also troubled by reports that Kurdish activist Habibollah Latifi might soon be executed despite serious questions about the motives of the Iranian government and the charges against him.
The United States urges the Iranian government to halt these executions, to release its political prisoners, and to guarantee the full enjoyment of human rights to all persons in Iran in accordance with its international obligations and its constitution. We also urge Iran to follow through with its pledge to allow the new UN Special Rapporteur on Iran access to the country, as announced today by Mohammad Javad Larijani, the head of Iranβs High Council for Human Rights.
May 20, 2011
The Associated Press
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) β A hard-line publication called on security forces Wednesday to arrest President Mahmoud Ahmadinejadβs closest political aide amid a widening political power struggle over who will shape Iranβs next government.
The demand by the Ya Lesarat weekly, considered the mouthpiece for some of Iranβs most extremist factions, does not necessarily mean authorities will act. But it reflects the fierce internal battles between Ahmadinejad and ultra-conservative groups who accuse him of trying to defy the authority of Iranβs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The heart of the crisis is over attempts to block Ahmadinejad and his loyalists from controlling the next parliament and influencing the candidates to succeed Ahmadinejad when he leaves office in 2013. Ahmadinejadβs critics claim he seeks to expand his powers at the expense of the ruling clerics, who were once his solid allies.
The commentary in the hard-line weekly urges the arrest of Ahmadinejadβs chief-of-staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, calling him a βvery dangerous person who is propping up a new cultβ β a reference to accusations that Mashaei seeks to undermine the ruling system in place since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Mashaei is also despised by hard-liners for views that elevate the values of pre-Islamic Persia and his statements suggesting Iran can oppose Israelβs government but can be friendly with the Israeli people.
Authorities have already arrested up to 25 people loyal to Ahmadinejad and Mashaei in recent weeks, including Kazem Kiapasha, a close Mashaei ally. Officials also have blocked half a dozen websites allied to them.
Kiapasha was taken into custody Tuesday over his alleged role in producing the controversial film βReappearance Is Very Nearβ that depicts Ahmadinejad and Khamenei as two close companions of Mahdi, a revered 9th century saint known as the Hidden Imam. Shiite Muslims believe Mahdi will reappear before Judgment Day to end tyranny and promote justice in the world.
Millions of DVDs of the film were distributed throughout Iran even as it was condemned by senior clerics in Qom, the countryβs seat of Shiite scholarship, who say no one can claim when Mahdi will reappear.
Pressures intensified after the presidentβs spiritual mentor, Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi, said last week that Ahmadinejad was under a βspellβ from Mashaei, whose daughter is married to the presidentβs son.
In devastating remarks against Mashaei, Yazdi claimed he was βmore than 90 percentβ certain that Ahmadinejad βhas been bewitchedβ.
Hard-line activist Davoud Karimi said the recent wave of arrests are a response to calls from Yazdi and others who see Mashaei as a threat to Iranβs system of clerical rule.
The crisis began last month after Ahmadinejad forced out his powerful intelligence chief, Heidar Moslehi, as part of an internal dispute. But Khamenei promptly reinstated Moslehi in a public slap to Ahmadinejad, who boycotted Cabinet meetings for 10 days before finally giving in to Khameneiβs order.
The high-profile confrontation emboldened Ahmadinejadβs critics and even brought rebukes from key allies such as Iranβs mighty Revolutionary Guard.
FRIDAY, 20 MAY 2011
HRANA News Agency β Mostafa Daneshjo, the attorney representing Nimatullahi Gonabadi Sufi Sect, was arrested on Wednesday evening, May 18, 2011.
According to a report by Majzooban Nur, Nimatullahi Gonabadi Order News Site, on Wednesday evening, a large number of security agents raided Mostafa Daneshjoβs office and arrested him.Β Β His whereabouts are unknown at the present time.
So far, the reason for Mostafa Daneshjoβs arrest hasnβt be announced, and there has been no news from this defense attorney and social activist.
In related news, it has been reported that on Sunday, May 15, 2011, fourteen members of Nimatullahi Gonabadi Sufi Sect were summoned by Gonabad Countyβs special unit in the prosecutorβs office in order to carry out their flogging sentences.
FRIDAY, 20 MAY 2011
HRANA News Agency β Siamak Sohrabi, a student activist at Sharif Polytechnic University, has been sentenced by the Revolutionary Court, Branch 26, to serve five years in prison on charges of planning gatherings and conspiring to act against national security.Β Β According to this verdict, his five-year prison sentence is suspended.
On Wednesday, April 13, 2011, Siamak Sohrabi was released on bail after spending 45 days in prison.Β Β On April 25, 2011, the Revolutionary Court, Branch 26, was convened with the presence of Siamak Sohrabiβs attorneys, Dr. Yosef Molahi and Saleh Nikbakht.Β Judge Pierabasi presided over the trial.Β Β Amongst those arrested during the demonstrations on February 14, 2011 in Sharif Polytechnic University, Siamak Sohrabi is the first college student who has been tried and convicted.
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Siamak Sohrabi is the chairman of the board for the General Council of Islamic Studentsβ Association, the representative of the Islamic Association in the universityβs Civil Council and a Civil Engineering graduate student.Β Β Siamak Sohrabi was arrested on February 28, 2011 while attempting to leave the university and then transferred to Evin prison.
Siamak Sohrabi has also served as a member of the University Guild Council and the Civil Engineering Guild Council.Β Prior to his arrest, he had written a letter to the Interim President of the Sharif University, Reza Rosta Azad, criticizing his policies and pressures placed on students and demanded the release of all arrested students.
On February 14, 2011, eighteen students were arrested during a gathering held in the Sharif University.Β Β Ali Akbar Mohammad Zade, the Secretary of Islamic Students Council, is the only student who is still in prison after being in custody for over three months.Β Β In the last few weeks, after spending nearly two months in the solitary confinement, Ali Akbar Mohammad Zade was transferred to ward 209 and then to the high-security ward 350 in Evin prison.
THURSDAY, 19 MAY 2011
HRANA News Agency β Saman Ostevar, aΒ Baha’i citizen and childrenβs rights activist, who was arrested on March 2, 2011 in the city of Kerman, still remains in Bamβs Prison, and uncertainty surrounds his future.
According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), Saman Ostevar is aΒ Baha’i citizen whoΒ resided in Kerman.Β Β He was arrested on March 2, 2011 and transferred to Bamβs prison.Β Β For a period of 48 days, Saman Ostevar was locked up in solitary confinement and placed under horrific psychological pressure.Β Β During this time, he was cut off from the world without being able to see or contact anyone.
Judicial authorities refuse to tell his family what charges have been filed against him.Β Β Saman Ostevarβs arraignment was held on April 17, 2011 in one of the courts in the city of Bam.Β Β Although Saman Ostevarβs wife has repeatedly visited judicial authorities to inquire about his case, they have refused to answer any of her questions.
It has been reported that on the morning of March 2, 2011, five security officers raided Saman Ostevarβs house and after searching the property, they seized his PC, laptop, books and CDs containingΒ Baha’i teachings and cell phone.Β Saman Ostevarβs wife had no news of him and didnβt know his whereabouts for 48 days following the arrest.
Saman Ostevar was a member of a charity organization dedicated to help children orphaned after the 2003 earthquake in Bam.Β Β Currently, there are 100-120 children sponsored by this organization.
Following the court session, Saman Ostevarβs family asked the prosecutor to release him on bail.Β Β However, the prosecutor opposed the bail sighting new evidence against the defender.
May 19, 2011
WASHINGTON β The death of Osama bin Laden has put a new focus on what role Iran might play in al-Qaidaβs future, as intelligence officials around the world analyzed reports that Saif al-Adel had taken over as al-Qaidaβs interim leader. Al-Adel was last known to be under house arrest outside Tehran.
The terrorist resume of al-Adel, one of al-Qaidaβs founders, includes helping orchestrate the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa. But he had sharp disagreements with bin Ladenβs leadership and opposed the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He accurately predicted that inciting the wrath of the U.S. would hurt al-Qaidaβs worldwide efforts.
Al-Adel is among the many senior al-Qaida figures who fled into Iran after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. They were arrested there in 2003 and were placed under what has been loosely called βhouse arrestβ in a compound outside Tehran. Over the years, some have been able to come and go, and the U.S. has worried that Iran would someday free them to restore al-Qaidaβs ranks.
This week, Noman Benotman, a former jihadist with links to al-Qaida in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Sudan who is now a security analyst in London, said al-Adel will serve as al-Qaidaβs interim leader until bin Ladenβs permanent successor is named.
βThey need someone to take care of the organization on a daily basis till they come up with a new leader,β Benotman said Wednesday. βThatβs the role of Saif.β
Itβs unclear exactly where al-Adel is. Some terrorism analysts and intelligence officials have said he left Iran last year and rejoined al-Qaida in the lawless region along Pakistanβs border with Afghanistan. Al-Adel is among the FBIβs most wanted terrorists and the U.S. is offering a $5 million reward for his capture.
Though Western and Arab intelligence officials said theyβd seen no hard evidence that al-Adel had taken over, his emergence as even a possible successor to bin Laden has renewed questions about the al-Qaida figures who have been held in Iran.
Iran and al-Qaida have a relationship of convenience, not an alliance. The Shiite regime in Tehran is generally hostile to the Sunni terrorist organization, but they have a shared enemy in the United States.
If al-Adel or any of the other senior figures were released, Iran would be in violation of a United Nations resolution and the U.S. has made it clear thatβs unacceptable. But if al-Adel has returned to al-Qaidaβs active leadership, it means two of the organizationβs most senior commanders have Iranian ties.
The other is Atiyah Abdul-Rahman, whom the U.S. considers the No. 3 figure in al-Qaida. He was the organizationβs emissary based in Iran and, over the years, heβs been allowed to travel in and out of the country. Richard Barrett, a United Nations official who monitors al-Qaida, said Wednesday that Rahman has been operating out of Pakistanβs tribal regions for some time.
The roster of al-Qaida figures held in Iran is particularly valuable in a post-bin Laden era. One is Abu Hafs the Mauritanian, a bin Laden adviser who helped form the modern al-Qaida by merging bin Ladenβs operation with Ayman al-Zawahiriβs Islamic Jihad. Al-Qaidaβs longtime chief financial officer, Abu Saeed al-Masri, has been held there. So have bin Ladenβs spokesman, Suleiman Abu Ghaith, and Mustafa Hamid, an al-Qaida trainer whose terrorism pedigree spans decades.
Using spy satellites, the U.S. has monitored vehicles in and out of the compound where the men have been held. Some information has been gleaned through intercepted Iranian phone conversations and e-mails, but generally, the information is limited.
The U.S. has never been sure about why Iran occasionally allows al-Qaida figures to travel and why they return. They are suspected to be taking smuggling routes heading toward Saudi Arabia or northwest Pakistan.
Occasionally, al-Adelβs cell phone would pop up on the grid somewhere outside Iran, and the U.S. would scramble to figure out why. It happened enough that the U.S. intelligence officials concluded that Iran was merely toying with them, according to two former counterterrorism officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.
Whether he is al-Qaidaβs interim leader or merely has rejoined its ranks, al-Adel brings to the table a calculating leadership and a murderous past.
βAl-Adel is a killer. He will use violence for the sake of violence,β said Rohan Gunaratna, head of the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore. βHe is the most ruthless leader in al-Qaida. When he was head of security intelligence, he rounded up so many of the spies and executed them.β
The 9/11 Commission reported that al-Adel was among the handful of senior leaders who urged bin Laden not to carry out the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, not because of the massive death toll but because he feared the U.S. response would weaken the Taliban, which was sheltering al-Qaida.
In 2006, scholars at West Point released a 2002 letter from al-Adel, including one extremely critical of bin Ladenβs leadership.
βWe must completely halt all external actions until we sit down and consider the disaster we caused,β al-Adel wrote. βDuring six months, we only lost what we built in years.β
Associated Press writers Meera Silva and Paisley Dodds in London and Kimberly Dozier in Washington contributed to this report.
May 19, 2011
LONDON β The Iranian opposition has reported the deployment of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to Syria to defend the regime of President Bashar Assad.
The Arab opposition to the Teheran regime said Iran has sent IRGC units to Syria to quell the revolt against Assad. The opposition said IRGC has been deployed in such Syrian cities as Banias, Damascus and Latakia.
βThe Revolutionary Guards Corps currently provides the latest military training for the forces of Bashar Assad and helps them with tactics to bring the protests in Syrian cities under control,β Nasser Jaber, a spokesman for the Movement for Arab Liberation of Ahvaz, said.
