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Recently released prisoner’s request from Iranian Leader

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Recently released prisoner’s request from Iranian Leader

05/17/2011

Mohammad Nourizad, the persecuted Iranian journalist and filmmaker who was recently released from prison, has called on Iran’s Supreme Leader to rule that each day a prisoner spends in solitary confinement will shave 10 days from his or her sentence.

Nourizad was jailed for his letters critical of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. On his personal website he writes: “My foremost request to our honest leader is to secure the release of all the post-election prisoners. However, if this request is not possible, then I am obliged to press for the return of rights that have been denied to prisoners and to urge the leader to issue an edict announcing that one day in solitary is worth at least 10 days of imprisonment.”

“Some of the most bitter seconds and hours of imprisonment are the moments and days in the solitary,” he adds.

Nourizad refers to solitary confinement as a form of torture that “wears out” the prisoner and he insists that a basic right is being withheld when solitary confinement is seen as equivalent to imprisonment in the general section.

If the Supreme Leader issued this edict, he adds, then many of the recent political prisoners would be released.

Nourizad writes: “Our leader has tasted imprisonment and exile and is aware of the anxiety and fear of solitary confinement.”

Ayatollah Khamenei was imprisoned for his political activities during the time of Iran’s last monarch, Mohammadreza Pahlavi .

Nourizad was sentenced last year to three years in prison and 50 lashes for “insulting officials and propaganda against the regime.” He was imprisoned in December of 2009 and released this month.

 

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Transfer of Prisoners Is Against The Law, Says Lawyer

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Transfer of Prisoners Is Against The Law, Says Lawyer

17th May 2011

Following the transfer of several female prisoners to Gharchak Prison in Varamin, Iranian lawyer Mohammad Ali Dadkhah told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that according to Iranian law, each prisoner must be transferred to the prison closest to his or her residence.

“According to the law, each prisoner must be transferred to a prison closest to his residence.  Even if he has committed a crime and has been arrested in a different city, the Prisons Organization can, based on a request by the prisoner to facilitate visits with his family, transfer him to the prison in his city of residence. On principle, the law stipulates that any action other than the sentence itself, which could lead to psychological and physical harm for the prisoner, should not take place,” Dadkhah, who represents several political prisoners, told the Campaign.

Two weeks ago, the women’s ward inside Rajaee Shahr Prison in Karaj was dissolved and several prisoners were abruptly transferred to Gharchak Prison in Varamin, a prison which political prisoners say lacks basic facilities and is in dire shape in terms of its hygiene, space, and security. The prisoners in this prison have not been separated according to their crimes and political prisoners are kept alongside other prisoners.

This transfer decision raises the question of whether after issuing a ruling and sentencing the suspects, the prison location may be changed. This is an especially significant question in light of the cases of several female prisoners transferred to Varamin, such as Shabnam Madadzadeh, whose final ruling and sentencing stated that she was to be imprisoned in Rajaee Shahr Prison.

“Our law expressly states that no official authority and no government organization can change the court ruling or prevent its implementation. Therefore, as the law is explicit about this area, this action cannot be carried out.  On principle, the purpose of imprisonment is to restrict some of the normal liberties and freedoms, not to harm or further abuse the prisoner.  From a humane point of view, a prisoner is a human being who is being stripped of certain rights and liberties for a set period of time. Even so, he must have proper hygiene and nutrition and, according to what has been stipulated in the Prisons Organization of Iran’s system, the prisoner should be able to have visitations with his family, lawyer, doctor, and under special circumstances, even his friends,” added Dadkhah. “Iran has unconditionally accepted the International Declaration of Human Rights and is committed to international civil, economic, and cultural covenants. Iran has also signed the 1969 Vienna Treaty, and Article 9 of Iran’s Civil Law sanctions international laws. As we have signed the international human rights treaties, we are bound by international and national laws to observe the rights of prisoners. In current international penal laws, revenge, intimidation, or shaming a prisoner is not intended.”

According to several reports, Varamin’s Gharachak Prison is comprised of seven pre-fabricated structures each of which holds more than 200 prisoners. The ineffective air conditioning system causes the constant presence of sewer smells in the structures. There are only two bathrooms and two shower stalls for 200 inmates, which fails minimum prison standards. After the female prisoners of Rajaee Shahr Prison were transferred to this facility, the female political prisoners of Evin Prison were also planned for a transfer, but it appears that those plans have been canceled.

 

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URGENT: Habib Latifi’s “execution sentence” has been CONFIRMED at Supreme court in Iran! Habib is at imminent risk of Execution!

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URGENT: Habib Latifi’s “execution sentence” has been CONFIRMED at Supreme court in Iran! Habib is at imminent risk of Execution!

05/17/2011

In interviews with Rooz, civil society activists and people familiar with the plight of political prisoners, stated that the execution of Kurdish political prisoner Habibollah Latifi has been upheld by the country’s highest judicial body and is awaiting implementation.

Habibollah Latifi’s family members, who were arrested as a precautionary measure as his execution became more imminent, have been released but barred from speaking to the media about their son’s condition. But, speaking to Rooz, Elaheh Latifi confirmed that her brother’s execution had been upheld by the supreme court.

Habibollah Latifi is a Kurdish student who has been behind bars in Sanandaj since 2007. He was sentenced to death for his alleged involvement in several bombings in Kurdistan. He was scheduled for execution last winter, but according to his lawyers, the execution was stayed after the court’s verdict was appealed.

Speaking to Rooz, civil society activist and law student Mokhtar Zarei, who has been closely following Habibollah Latifi’s case, describes the current status of this Kurdish political prisoner.

Rooz: Is this death verdict final? Is any other judicial recourse available?

Mokhtar Zarei (MZ): Currently, the case has finished its march through the judicial process, and the verdict is awaiting implementation. But because the Islamic republic supreme leader has extrajudicial pardoning powers, and he has delegated that power to the highest judicial authority, currently the only solution is to obtain the supreme leader’s pardon. That’s why several of us civil society activists, working closely with many residents in Sanandaj and Habibollah’s attorneys, have submitted a pardon request to the supreme leader’s office after gathering one thousand signatures.

Rooz: How effective is such a request? What is the legal basis for it?

MZ: If we want to talk about the law, the law states that a jury must be present in any case involving political charges, and the verdict must be issued by the jury. Unfortunately, despite the clear legal mandate, the Iranian judicial system has effectively eliminated the jury requirement. As a student of the law, I believe that gathering signatures from the citizenry¾from clerics, students, merchants, teachers, laborers, and civil society activists¾is a new and novel mechanism that can perhaps fill the jury void. We hope that the supreme leader grants the pardon.

Rooz: As a civil-legal activist, do you think the request will be granted?

MZ: Throughout this case, and over time, we realized that the judicial officials in Kurdistan are not keen on implementing execution verdicts. The regime itself often attempts to find a way to reverse execution and ghesas [retribution] verdicts. That’s why we hope that the supreme leader grants our request. In the end, I want to thank Kurdistan’s judicial officials and the province’s governor for their goodwill. They have refused to implement the verdict despite the fact that it was finalized a long time ago. Here, on the behalf of civil society activists in Sanandaj, I want to thank the officials in Kurdistan for their efforts in delaying Habibollah Latifi’s execution.

 

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Iran ‘pursuing’ info about missing Canadian reporter

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Iran ‘pursuing’ info about missing Canadian reporter

May 17, 2011

By Amy Minsky, Postmedia News

Canadian officials say they are “pressing for information” about the whereabouts of a Canadian journalist working for Al-Jazeera, after Syrian officials said she had been deported to Iran.

“We are very concerned about this individual and are pressing for information about her whereabouts,” Lisa Monette, a Department of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman, said Tuesday.

The Canadian response came hours after Iran’s foreign ministry said it is “pursuing” the whereabouts of journalist Dorothy Parvaz, who holds Canadian, U.S. and Iranian passports.

The 39-year-old has been missing since she arrived in Damascus from her home in Qatar on April 29 for an assignment with Al-Jazeera.

Pleas for information on Parvaz’s health and safety from those close to her went unanswered for six days, until Syrian officials confirmed they were holding her.

But that news was all her family would hear from Syrian authorities until last Wednesday, when the embassy in Washington said that she had been deported to Tehran after attempting to enter the country on an expired Iranian passport.

“We are pursuing the issue,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday when asked if Parvaz was in Iran.

“Acquiring information about her situation is important for us.”

The spokesman added: “She entered Syria on an invalid Iranian passport, did not have any work permit and was carrying other passports, American and Canadian.”

Iran does not officially recognize multiple nationalities for one person.

Three days earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi had said he had “no information” on the journalist’s whereabouts.

Canadian officials “are engaging” Iranian and Syrian authorities at high levels in an effort to get more information on Parvaz’s situation, the Foreign Affairs spokeswoman said.

Relations between Iran and Canada have long been strained. In 2003, Zahra Kazemi, a Canadian Iranian photojournalist, was tortured then killed in a prison in Tehran.

In summer 2009, Canadian Iranian filmmaker and Newsweek correspondent Maziar Bahari was imprisoned and was only released following pressure from the U.S. government.

The Conservative government has repeatedly condemned Iranian authorities, with Prime Minister Stephen Harper labelling the regime’s ideology as “evil,” and saying its use of “brute force and intimidation” against its own people has been unacceptable.

According to the Syrian embassy, Parvaz was put on a flight to Tehran on May 1, escorted by the Iranian consul in Damascus, within “less than 48 hours of her arrival.”

It said Parvaz was turned over to Iran because she was carrying an expired Iranian passport when she arrived in Damascus, citing “tourism” as her reason for travel.

“It is very regretful that a journalist working for a world-renowned news agency such as Al-Jazeera International would attempt to enter a country on two illegal accounts — an expired passport, and by providing false information on official documents regarding her travel reason,” the embassy said.

The Syrian government had been clamping down on dissidents and members of the media as demonstrations continue to spread through the country, which is in the throes of a violent civil uprising.

Parvaz, 39, began working with Al-Jazeera in 2010. She was born in Iran but moved to Canada when she was 12. Some of her family members remain in British Columbia, and Canadian officials are in contact with them, Monette said.

Al-Jazeera appealed to Iran last week for the immediate release of Parvaz. U.S. authorities have also expressed concern about her case.

With files from Agence France-Presse

 

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Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi Executed in Esfahan for Enmity with God

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Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi Executed in Esfahan for Enmity with God

TUESDAY, 17 MAY 2011

HRANA News Agency – Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi were hanged in Esfahan prison on Tuesday morning, May 17, 2011.

According to a report by Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), in early morning hours, the two brothers who were 27 and 28 years old were hanged in Esfahan’s Dastgerd prison while a group of people together with the Fathi family gathered outside since the night before to ask for the verdict to be repealed.

Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi were charged with the crime known as Moharebeh [Waging War Against God] through armed robbery and organizing an illegal group against the Islamic Republic regime.  The two brothers had confused to their crimes as a result of being tortured for a long time.

On March 28, 2010, seven individuals were arrested by law enforcement officers in Chalus (Mazandaran Province) and were subsequently transferred to Esfahan.  These seven individuals have been identified to be Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi (son of Bijan), Davood Jamshidian (son of Mohammad Reza), Saied Javanmardi (son of Yadollah), Mohsen Goudarzi (son of Lotfollah), Daniel Amiryavary (son of Mohammad Reza), and Ibrahim Javanmardi (son of Reza).

Judge Moghazi presided over Esfahan’s Revolutionary Court, Branch 24, in a trial which lasted two hours and sentenced the aforementioned individuals to death.  After the cases were referred to the higher court, the Supreme Court judges announced that the maximum penalty for each individual should have been seven to fifteen years in prison.  Accordingly, the death sentences for five of these individuals were repealed.  However, Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi’s punishment was not reversed, and their family was notified by the officials who said, “The order has come from the above that these two must be executed.”

Bijan Fathi, Mohammad and Abdullah Fathi’s father, in an interview with HRANA pointed out that their home was near the front lines during the Iran-Iraq war in the 80’s and mentioned, “My sons suffered from neurological disorders because of bombings and explosions.  Mohammed developed stuttering, and Abdullah didn’t begin talking until he was three years old.  From 1986, they were receiving psychological counseling and treatment, and four years ago, their treatment began again.  The records are still kept by their doctor.  Consequently, they either aren’t capable of committing such crimes or are not in control of their actions.”

Bijan Fathi added, “My sons’ medical records have been sent to the court, but unfortunately, no one has bothered to conduct an investigation by referring the records to the medical examiner.  They have just said that they want to execute these two individuals.”

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Ali Khamenei and the IRGC are under investigation for supporting the 9/11 plotters

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Ali Khamenei and the IRGC are under investigation for supporting the 9/11 plotters

May 16, 2011

U.S. Federal Supreme Court indictment: Ali Khameni and the Revolutionary Guard should be on the International Arrest Warrant wanted list for their support of the 11 September 2001 World Trade Centre attack.

According to exclusive information obtained by Iran Briefing, the United States of America Judicial System, in one of the most important cases in its history, will issue a verdict on Monday 16 May 2011. The case was brought by relatives of the World Trade Centre attack victims and more than 70 American, Iranian, British and Canadian lawyers have participated in its considerations. The case was made in response to the requests by relatives of the World Trade Centre attack victims. One of the lawyers involved in the case stated that over 5 years more than 36,000 hours have been spent on it.

An informed official has told Iran Briefing that the case considers the evidence of the National Committee on World Trade Centre attack including the witness statements of more than 120 political activists, journalists, researchers and terrorism analysts, as well as members of Al-Qaida, the Intelligence Ministry of Iran and the Revolutionary Guard, including well known figures of the Islamic Republic of Iran. In response to the collected evidence, which includes documents linked to Al-Qaeda, the testimonies of witnesses and secret communications of Al-Qaeda members, the United States Supreme Court Prosecutor has issued the final indictment of the case.

The case shows that the Islamic Republic of Iran government has been the biggest supporter and sponsor of Al-Qaeda after the World Trade Centre attack. The evidence is kept in 15 files containing more than 8,000 pages. Iranian financial support, the providing of refuge for Bin Laden’s family, the supply of military aid and arms to Al-Qaeda in Iraq and Afghanistan, used to attack American forces, are among the accusations levelled against the Iranian government. In this case Ali Khameani, Iranian Supreme leaders, two former Foreign Affairs Ministers, Kharazi and Motaki, two Commanders of the Revolutionary Guard, General Safavi and General Jafari, as well as two Commanders of the Quads Forces, are among first to be held responsible.

It is important to note that some members of the Revolutionary Guard, including high ranking commanders who sought political asylum abroad, testified that the Revolutionary Guard provided Al-Qaeda members with military training prior to the 11 September 2001 World Trade Centre attack.

One of the lawyers involved in the case has told Iran Briefing that after 6 years of effort and hard work, the verdict will be issued through officials to the United States judiciary and media on Monday 16th May 2011, adding that two European countries tried to undermine the efforts and investigation committee in order to stop the investigation. Additionally, this lawyer stated that the Islamic Republic of Iran, in cooperation with another country, is also accused of the attempted kidnap of one of the members of the investigation team, an operation that was prevented by the  intervention of US Foreign Affairs and CIA personnel.

Iran Briefing will continue to report on this breaking news once the official announcement has been made.


 

Universities Under Siege

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Universities Under Siege

May 16, 2011

University Classes Canceled in Tehran, Mashhad, and Mazandaran

Yesterday, Iranian university campuses were filled with police and security forces as student groups called for a day of protests. Despite the heavy security presence, classes were canceled in university campuses across Tehran, Mashhad, and Mazandaran.

At the Tehran Polytechnic University, some student activists who had participated in previous protests were not allowed to enter the campus.

Reports from the Mazandaran University also pointed to heavy police and security presence. Some student activists there were threatened that they would face harsh consequences if the participated in any protests.

Several student organizations reported that, as some classes were canceled at the Tehran University, campus security forces were monitoring traffic and had created a security blanket to intimidate the would-be protesters. Eyewitnesses report that plain-clothes security forces were widely present in areas inside and surrounding the Tehran University campus.

Reports from Isfahan University noted that security forces were involved in clashes and had beaten several of the students. Campus security officers were monitoring traffic across campus, checking some students’ identification cards and detaining others at the campus security offices.

More than forty universities had released statements in support of yesterday’s nationwide protests, including Tehran, Polytechnic, Allame Tabatabei, Mazandaran, Gilan, Arak, Yazd, and Hamedan universities.

After the statements were released, university disciplinary committees prepared lists of activist students and threatened them with harsh disciplinary and judicial measures if they took part in any protests.

The coordination committee of the Rahe Sabz Omid (Green Path of Hope) also invited university students across the country to take part in the protests: “The coordination committee of the Rahe Sabz Omid denounces the suppression of universities and other actions that threaten the sanctity and academic excellence of universities and other institutions of higher learning. It supports the peaceful and grassroots efforts of students and hereby invites the academic community to participate in this expression of a peaceful, civil protest.”

 

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Mehdi Mahmoudian on Dry Hunger Strike

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Mehdi Mahmoudian on Dry Hunger Strike
16 , May , 2011

The families of a number of Iranian political prisoners have expressed grave concern over the well-being of Mehdi Mahmoudian, a jailed journalist who is on a dry hunger strike.

He is currently in poor physical condition.

Mahmoudian had written a letter to Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, that reveals the “prevalence of sexual abuse in prison.” That letter, which was published last week on the Kaleme website, percipitated Mahmoudian’s transfer to 10 days of solitary confinement and the withdrawal of his visiting privileges for three months, Kaleme reports.

Mahmoudian has reportedly started a hunger strike since his transfer to solitary confinement.

Mahmoudian was arrested last year in the post-election crackdown on the opposition. He has been sentenced to five years in prison for the charge of “assembly against the regime.”

 

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Iran: 25 people executed in one week

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Iran: 25 people executed in one week

Monday 16 May 2011

Tehran, 16 May (AKI) – Twenty-five prisoners were executed in Iran in a single week and at least were 6 hanged in public, the Iranian dissident group the National Council of Resistance of Iran said Monday in a statement.

Among the hangings, three prisoners were executed in Qazvin and Tonokabon on Saturday and four prisoners were put to death in Kerman on Friday.

“In another brutal, middle-ages-style act, 9 Arab- speaking Iranians were hanged in Ahvaz on May 8. Six of them were hanged in the Karun prison of Ahvaz and 3 others, who were brothers and were from 21 to 25 years of age, were hanged in public,” the statement said.

Prior to their executions, the victims were paraded through the streets of suburbs of Ahvaz in Khuzestan province, the statement added.

Iran so far this year has executed over 300 people, according to human rights groups.

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other human rights groups have spoken out against Iran for its use of capital punishment.

The country is alleged to have the second highest execution rate in the world, after China.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran, founded in 1981 in France, is the parliament in exile of the “Iranian Resistance”, and is a political umbrella coalition of five Iranian opposition political organizations, the largest organization being the People’s Mujahedin of Iran.

 

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Only One Month to Find, Sentence and Execute Suspects, Says Ahwazi Activist

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Only One Month to Find, Sentence and Execute Suspects, Says Ahwazi Activist

16th May 2011

Yousef Azizi Banitorof, Secretary of the Center for Combating Racism and Discrimination Against Arabs in Iran, who currently resides in London, spoke with International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran following news from the Al Arabiya website quoting Ahwaz News about recent executions in Ahwaz. ”According to news we were able to receive from our contacts in Ahwaz, three people were hanged in public at Hamidieh Junction. They were three brothers by the names of Ali Heydari (25), Jassem Heydari (23), and Nasser Heydari (21). The hangings were viewed by eyewitnesses and there is no doubt that they took place. But another six were hanged inside Karoon Prison in Ahwaz, and nobody knows anything about it. Their families have not yet seen the bodies, nor were they informed at all in order to appear at the prison on the execution date. They, too, have only just heard this news,” said Azizi Banitorof.

Official sources only announced the names of eight of the nine executed individuals. Azizi Banitorof indicated that his sources in Ahwaz were also unable to find the name of the ninth individual. According to Ahwaz News’ website, five of the six executed individuals at Karoon Prison were Amir Moavi, Ali Na’ami, Amir Badavi, Ahmad Naseri, and Hashem Hamidi. The individuals are all from Ahwaz.

“Contrary to news from official Iranian sources that have stated their charges as ‘attacking the police’ and ‘acts against public chastity,’ we and local sources believe that the three brothers hanged at the Hamidieh Junction were active protesters during the 15 April demonstrations in Ahwaz this year. If the Islamic Republic of Iran disputes this assertion, they should allow independent human rights organizations to go to Iran and prove otherwise. They were kids from the Mallalshieh neighborhood. Mallashieh was the first spot in Ahwaz where the 15 April demonstrations started. We believe they were active in the protests and gathered people to participate in the demonstrations, and now the Islamic Republic has publicly executed them to intimidate the others,” said Azizi Banitorof about the charges against the executed individuals.

On 15 April the ethnic Arab population of Ahwaz and surrounding towns gathered to commemorate the 2005 protests, during which several protesters were killed and many others were arrested. During this year’s protests, several people were also killed and many were injured and arrested.

Reacting to the discrimination in this region, lawyer and Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi wrote a letter to the United Nations High Commissioner of Human Rights, asking for a review of the events in Ahwaz. “Considering the geographic importance of the Khuzestan Province, and bearing in mind that Arab Iranians in the region have suffered from undue discrimination and currently live under unfavorable conditions, a widespread unrest in this region of Iran is probable,” wrote Ebadi.

“As Secretary of the Center for Combating Racism and Discrimination Against Arabs in Iran, I believe that the Iranian government wishes to seek revenge on that protest. The Hamidieh Junction is a location where residents of Ahwaz, Hamidieh, and Mallashieh frequent, and by using this location for executing the three brothers, perhaps they wished to intimidate the people of all three regions, so that they would not attempt demonstrations again. Who knows whether the six other individuals executed inside the Karoon Prison were former political prisoners, or whether they were arrested during the 15 April protests?” Azizi Banitorof told the Campaign.

“Official news sources have announced that the three brothers executed in public were charged with ‘armed attack on the police at an inspection stop in Ahwaz,’ but no objective eyewitnesses have confirmed this. The suspects did not have lawyers either, and the trial was held in a closed court session, behind closed doors. It is strange that in less than one month, the Islamic Republic found the murderer, sentenced him, and carried out the sentence, whereas these legal proceedings should have taken several months. Individuals should not be executed so easily and the sentence should not be finalized and carried out so quickly,”

“We witness executions of political activists inside the Ahwaz Prison from time to time; sometimes as ‘smugglers’ and sometimes as ‘rapists.’  The Iranian government has never tolerated Ahwaz’s ethnic Arabs,” added Azizi Banitorof.

 

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