Forced Transfers
On Wednesday December 25, 2013 Maragheh Prison officials proceeded the forced transfer of Mehdi Koukhayan to Tabriz Central Prison according to the official order of Prosecutor of Malekan City. The social rights activist was beaten severely after protest against this order and its execution.
Police officers transferred him to Tabriz Central Prison with his bare feet. The judicial authorities of the prison declined to accept him and he was returned back to Maragheh Prison. Duty judge stating his case is incomplete, refused to accept him.
On July 6, 2013 Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Maragheh tried the activist on charges of spreading propaganda against the State and sentenced him to one more year imprisonment.
Previously, Mehdi Koukhayan was tried on charges of spreading propaganda against the State and sentenced to one year in jail on March 12, 2013.
Asadollah Asadi transferred to solitary confinement in Evin Detention 240. Authorities of the prison prevented the release of Dr. Asadollah Asadi and he objected that. In reaction, the authorities moved him to solitary confinement in Detention 240 of Evin Prison. According to HRANA, based on the report of Status Announcement of prisoners, his sentence was commuted and should had been released on December 11, 2013. However, after 10 days the head of Section 350 told him there will be no commute for the activist and after his protest, transferred the prisoner to the solitary detention.
Executions
Tabriz Prison: on December 18, 2013, four young people were hanged in the Central Prison of Tabriz. They were sentenced to death for the rape and sexual harassment. Iranian government is the world’s leader in capital punishment and considers the death penalty and imprisonment as the only way to reduce crime in the community.
Urmia Prison: In December 2013, General Court of Urmia executed the death sentence of four convicted of murder prisoners. Human rights activists said nearly 170 inmates accused of murder in Urmia Central Prison awaiting execution of the sentence.
Trials
Tabriz: five Azerbaijani social activists named Salar Touri, Mohammad Amiri, Mohammad Khatibi, Ali Sirnak, and Adel Khandan were arrested before the first game of Teraktorsazi FC in AFC Champions League on February 26, 2013 along with 45 other fans and were released on bail.
On Monday December 16, 2013 the hearing of these Azerbaijani National Movement activists was held. Mr. Samadi, the integrator of Branch 19 of Tabriz Revolutionary Court, has charged them with “assembly and collusion against the regime”.
Maragheh: The trial court of social rights activists Davoud Azimzadeh and Bahman Khaleghi was held on Wednesday December 21, 2013. Judge Davarnia sentenced Davoud Azimzadeh to one year of imprisonment and another year suspended for five years and sentenced Bahman Khaleghi to six months of imprisonment and another six months suspend for five years. The judge charged both activists with “membership in a group whose aim is to disrupt national security”.
Davoud Azimzadeh and Bahman Khaleghi had been detained in their homes on January 13, 2013 in Maragheh and Bonab after the protest of the people of Maragheh over Iran’s foreign policy towards Armenia by security forces. After 2 months of detention, they were released temporarily on bail of 500 million rials.
End of Sentence
Akbar Mohajeri, an Azerbaijani civil rights activist who was sentenced to 4 months, was released from Tabriz Central Prison after the end of his sentence on Tuesday December 10, 2013. He was arrested during distributing posters of Azerbaijani political prisoners caught in objecting to the drying up of Lake Urmia along with several other Azerbaijani activists. Akbar was released temporarily from Tabriz Central Prison after nearly two months in detention on November 19, 2011 on bail of 300 million rials.
Arrests
The arrest of a number of Teraktorsazi FC fans: Teraktrosazi Football Club is the only representative of Turkish provinces of Iran in Iranian pro-league. In recent years, citizens from different cities of Azerbaijan broadly participate in the games of Teraktorsazi FC and chant slogans in support of the team and their national aspirations. In response, authorities of the Islamic Republic attempt to arrest a large number of fans in each of the games. On November 29, 2013, during the match between Teraktorsazi and Persepolis held in Tabriz, a number of fans were arrested. Here are the names of some of them: Savad Poursaleh, Behnam Eslami, Hassan Ahmadi (from Tabriz), Ali Masoumi, Hossein Narimanzadeh (from Parsabad), Akbar Taheri (from Khoy), Amir Taavizi, Mojtaba Kamali, Javad Kamali (Bonab), Ghasem Derafshi, Akbar Derafshi (Marand), and Feridun Nemati. These people were transferred to Saeb Detention of Police Intelligence and were released on bail after a few days.
The arrest of 10 people in Miandoab: December 12, 2013 on the occasion of the anniversary of the formation of the National Government of Azerbaijan in 1945, a ceremony was held in the city of Qoshachay (Miandoab) on the grave of Mirza Khanali Motiei a martyrdom of Democratic Party. Iranian security forces raided the audiences and attendees and sabotaged the event. The security forces arrested more that ten activists and moved them to the Bureau of Intelligence and some of the names of detainees are as follows: Dariush Andalibi, Yousef Mokhtari, Javad Soudbar, Habib Manafiazar (from Qoshachay), and Artan Ebrahimi (from Maragheh). Shahcheraghi, the judge on duty of Public and Revolutionary Court of Miandoab after arraignment, issued them a bail of 100 million rials.
The arrest of Eskandar Ali Mirzaee in Urmia: On Friday, December 27, 2013 Eskandar Ali Mirzaee was summoned by a phone call to the Bureau of Intelligence of Urmia. He was asked to come to the Bureau to give some explanations on Saturday, December 28, 2013. The activist was arrested after attending office, spent two days in Urmia Intelligence Bureau, and was released after two days.
Arrests in Tabriz:
- Hossein Alizadeh, an Azerbaijani activist was arrested on December 25, 2013 at his workplace and is maintained in Tabriz intelligence office custody. According to his relatives, the political activist was severely beaten by the guards.
- On Wednesday December 4, 2013 security forces arrested Rasoul Razavi, an Azerbaijani national-civil activist. It’s worth noting that the activist had been arrested a few times before and released on bail on dates April 2, 2010 and October 9, 2011.
Hunger strikes
Israfil Soltanian: Wednesday December 4, 2013, security forces transferred Esrafil Soltanian to section 209 of Evin Prison (security section of Evin prison) after three days of detention in the Intelligence Bureau of the city of Golestan. Protesting being detained illegally and the conditions of the detention, the activist has been on hunger strike for several days. After 44 days of detention, he was released on bail of 500 million rial from Evin Prison on Tuesday January 14, 2014. Earlier, the Azerbaijani activist was arrested in the city of Ardebil in May 2007 in the anniversary of Azerbaijanis protests of May 2006.
Ismail Barzgari: Ismail Barzgari, an Azerbaijani dentist and musician serving his 7-year imprisonment sentence in Evin Prison, has been on hunger strike protesting the lack of fair trial and the denial of his sick leave since November 21, 2013. In his forty-third day of the strike, the prison officials took him to solitary confinement in section 240 of the prison for second time on Saturday December 7, 2013.
Earlier, the officials of the prison had transferred him to solitary confinement because of his hunger strike. After a negotiation between the activist and the officials including Mr. Javad Momeni the vise president the prison who promised to investigate and pursue the demands of the activist, Ismail Barzgari agreed to quit his strike. However, after Ismail was moved to the public section of the prison, the officials did not take their words and he continued his hunger strike and as a result, under the cover of conversation with Mr Nassirpour, the Chief of Enforcement, he was taken to solitary confinement. After 60 days of hunger strike and strong promise of officials to pursue his case, the activist ended his strike on December 27, 2013.
Cancellation of sending Saeed Matinpour to hospital because of his protest against being forced to wear prison clothes and handcuffs. On Sunday December 29, 2013 the officials of Evin Prison cancelled his medical appointment outside of the prison because he protested being forced to wear prison cloths and handcuffs.
Saeed Matinpour an Azerbaijani civil rights activist from Zanjan has been sentenced to eight years imprisonment by Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court on charges of espionage and contact with foreigners and propagating against the regime. As of July 11, 2009 so far, he has been in prison without the possibility of release.
Over these years, Matinpour has been suffering from a variety of diseases including the curvature of the spine, herniated disc, heart failure, gastrointestinal problems, sinusitis and tooth decay.
Ahraz
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