Iran: Mounting Crackdown on Teachers, Labor ActivistsAuthorities Arrest Union Leaders, Threaten Strikersایران: افزایش سرکوب فعالان کارگری و معلمانمقامات رهبران اتحادیه‌ها را دستگیر و اعتصاب‌کنندگان را تهدید می‌کنند

November 22, 2018

(Beirut) – Iranian authorities have increased targeting of teachers and labor activists in recent weeks for organizing and conducting peaceful protests, Human Rights Watch said today.

On November 13, 2018, the Council for Coordination among Teachers Unions organized a walkout involving dozens of teachers across Iran to protest their insufficient salaries due to high inflation and poor living conditions. It was the second teacher-organized walkout since September 21, when Iran’s public school year began.

Iran Must Pass Legislation to Protect Women Against Violenceمجلس باید تصویب لایحه تامین امنیت زنان در برابر خشونت را در اولویت قرار دهد

NOVEMBER 23, 2018

Women with Disabilities and Other Vulnerable Groups Face Heightened Risk of Abuse

November 23, 2018—The Iranian authorities must bring legislation protecting women from domestic violence that has been languishing for years to parliament and ratify it so that Iranian women can have the protections against domestic violence required under international law, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) said today.

Iran Executions: Three Men Hanged in Public- IHR Warns About a New Wave of Execution in the Coming Weeks

November 21, 2018

Iran Human Rights; November 21, 2018: Three prisoners were hanged in public at Iranian city of Shiraz this morning. Several children were observed among the crowd watching the executions.

Iranian authorities have executed at least 15 people during the last 8 days. Iran Human Rights (IHR) warns against a new wave of executions in Iran and urges the UN, EU and countries with diplomatic relations with Iran to react immediately to stop these executions.

The IHR spokesperson and director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, said: “We demand the halt of all executions, especially public executions which are inhumane and humiliating, and promote violence in society,” IHR spokesperson emphasized, “At the first anniversary of the nationwide protests in Iran, we are concerned that the Iranian authorities will use more executions and terror to avoid new protests. Adequate and prompt international reactions can stop these executions”.

According to Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA), Siamak Eslaminia, Kourosh Gholizadeh and Foad Ghanemi were hanged in public at Payam square of Shiraz city.

All three were convicted to death on Moharebeh charge (waging war against God) for armed robbery. The first defendant was also accused of killing a policeman.

“Tens of children between 3 to 10 years old were among crowd along with their parents,” Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.

UN human rights experts, including the former Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran, had previously drawn particular attention to continued reports of public executions. “A dehumanizing effect on both the victim and those who witness the execution” and ultimately reinforced the “already cruel, inhuman and degrading nature of the death penalty,” UN experts said.

COMMENTARY - EU Should Wake Up And Help Real Change In Iranاتحادیه اروپا باید بیدار شود و به تغییر واقعی در ایران کمک کند - نظر

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini (left) and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif attend a ministerial meeting of the P5+1 countries and Iran held on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly.

November 23, 2018

The principal reason European officials think that forging financial ties with Iran will change the behavior of the Islamic Republic is the belief that helping a stable but dictatorial state is better than taking a risk hearing the voices of millions of Iranians calling for structural change.

There are many metaphors and allegories for the problems in Iran and the multiple threats it poses to global security, but as we pen this commentary we cannot help but think of one specific image: an empty train station with 28 passengers waiting on a platform for a train that will never arrive. These 28 passengers are the member states of the European Union, and the awaited train is their desire for normal relations with what can only be called a theocratic dictatorship.

UN committee criticizes human rights violations in Iranکمیته سازمان ملل متحد نقض حقوق بشر در ایران را مورد انتقاد قرار می دهد

November 15, 2018

By Edith M. Lederer | AP

UNITED NATIONS — A U.N. committee on human rights approved a resolution Thursday urging Iran to stop its widespread use of arbitrary detention and expressing serious concern at its “alarmingly high” use of the death penalty.

The General Assembly’s Human Rights Committee adopted the resolution by a vote of 85-30, with 68 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be approved by the 193-member world body next month.

The resolution “strongly urges” Iran to eliminate discrimination against women in law and practice and expresses “serious concern about ongoing severe limitations and restrictions on the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief.”

‘Sultan of Coins’ executed as Iran violates human rights to placate anger over economy and corruption"سلطان سکه" اعدام شده است، زیرا ایران حقوق بشر را نقض می کند تا عصبانیت مردم را بر اقتصاد و فساد اداری کندThree more remain on death row over financial crimes after convictions in quick trials that critics say fail to meet Iranian or international legal standards

November 17, 2018

The execution of two Iranian gold traders this week has raised concerns that the authorities are seeking to use them as scapegoats to divert attention from corruption at the heart of the regime.

But while the Iranian establishment has hailed the arrests and prosecutions of the traders, charged with corruption and tried by a special court dealing with cases of economic malfeasance, rights advocates have criticised what they call “kangaroo trials”.

Among the executed was Vahid Mazloumin, branded “the Sultan of Coins” for hoarding gold in an alleged effort to manipulate prices. 

The pair were convicted on charges of “spreading corruption on earth”, considered a severe breach of Iranian law. Amnesty International called the trial “grossly unfair”.

Iran does not respect human rights: Saudi envoyایران به حقوق بشر احترام نمی گذارد: نماینده سعودی

November 15, 2018

JEDDAH: The Iranian people continue to suffer under an “unjust… system of darkness” that does not respect human rights, said the Saudi ambassador to the UN.

Abdallah Al-Mouallimi said the report of the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, submitted on Sept. 27, and the secretary-general’s report on Aug. 6, made clear that the country persecutes ethnic and religious minorities, including Sunni Muslim Balochis and Ahwazi Arabs.

“The Kingdom affirms the sovereign right of states to determine their judicial systems and penal provisions, while believing in the need to limit the application of death sentences to cases of extreme necessity,” he added.

He stressed the importance of a political solution to the Syrian conflict, establishing a transitional authority and drafting a new constitution guaranteeing justice for all Syrians. He also urged Myanmar’s civilian leadership to prove that it deserves the world’s respect and its people’s support by embracing all its citizens without discrimination or favoritism.

Iran Executions: Man Hanged at Zahedan Prisonاعدام یک زندانی در زندان مرکزی زاهدان

November 15, 2018

Iran Human Rights (IHR); November 15, 2018: A Prisoner was hanged at Zahedan Central Prison on Monday, November 12.

According to IHR sources, Milad Nouri was hanged on the morning of November 12, 2018. IHR could not yet obtain information about what he was accused of.

Baluchi civil activist, Habibollah Sarbazi, told IHR, “a night before the execution, authorities called his family to go to the prison for the last meeting. We have heard that he was executed on rebellion charges, but we cannot confirm it yet.”

According to the Baluchi Activists’ Campaign, Milad Nouri was a married man with two children. He was arrested around a year ago by security forces.

The Iranian media outlets have not published news related to the aforementioned execution so far.

Concerns about the Executions of Ahvazi Arab Activists in Iranتشدید نگرانی در مورد احتمال اعدام تعدادی از فعالان عرب اهوازی

NOVEMBER 11, 2018

Iran Human Rights (IHR); November 11, 2018: IHR has received information about the execution of several Ahvazi Arab activists on Thursday, November 8.

Two different sources confirmed to IHR that several Ahwazi Arab activists were executed on Thursday, November 8, at one of the prisons in the Iranian city of Ahvaz (Ahwaz).

“In the aftermath of the September attack to a military parade in Ahvaz, Iranian Ministry of intelligence announced that 22 people were arrested for alleged connection to the incident. It seems that authorities executed all of them on Thursday. Today [Sunday, November 11] they told the prisoners’ families that the executions were carried out. They warned the families against public mourning.”

Iran Executions: Man Hanged at Ardakan Prisonاعدام یک زندانی در زندان اردکان استان یزد

NOVEMBER 5, 2018

Iran Human Rights (IHR); November 5, 2018: A prisoner was executed on a murder charge at Ardakan Prison on Saturday, November 3.

According to HRANA, Sami’ Mohtarami, 43, was convicted to qisas (retribution in kind) on a murder charge. He killed a person during a car robbery in 2015.

The victim’s family agreed to forgive Sami’ in the condition of receiving Diya. Diya in Islamic law (Sharia) is a financial compensation paid to heirs of a victim to thus avoid a retaliation punishment. However, Sami’ was a poor man and could not pay the amount. Therefore, his execution was carried out on the morning on Sunday, November 3, 2018.

Forced Psychiatric Hospitalization Cannot Become New Means of Silencing Dissent in Iranبستری شدن روانپزشکی اجباری نمیتواند به عنوان ابزار جدید خلع سلاح در ایران تبدیل شود

NOVEMBER 6, 2018

Teachers’ Rights Activist, Held Against His Will at Psychiatric Hospital in Iran and Forcibly Given Medications, Must Be Released Immediately

 Wife and Son of Hashem Khastar Arrested with Other Protestors, Released Same Day

November 6, 2018—The Iranian government should immediately release teachers’ rights activist Hashem Khastar from the psychiatric facility where he has been forcibly and unlawfully held, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) said in a statement today.

In addition, CHRI condemns the arrest on November 5, of Khastar’s wife, Sedigheh Maleki, and their two sons, Jahed Khastar and Ahmad Khastar, in addition to the other protesters who were with them, in front of the hospital where Khastar is being unlawfully held. While they were released at the end of the day, these arrests were a transparent means of intimidation to shut down protest over Khastar’s forced admittance into the psychiatric hospital.

Masoud Kazemi is the Second Journalist to Be Arrested in Tehran Within Two Weeksمسعود کاظمی دومین روزنامه نگار است که ظرف دو هفته در تهران دستگیر می شود

NOVEMBER 7, 2018

Unidentified security agents detained journalist Masoud Kazemi in Tehran on November 5, 2018, making him the second known case of a journalist being arrested in the Iranian capital within the last two weeks.

“Bail has been set at 250 million tomans [approximately $59,340 USD], which I hope his family will be able to come up with,” his attorney, Ali Mojtahedzadeh, tweeted on November 6.

“Detention without prior warning is only permissible in very limited cases for people accused of serious or dangerous crimes but unfortunately, it is repeatedly happening to journalists and becoming a normal pattern,” he added.

Iran: Juvenile Offender Sentenced to Deathمحکومیت یک کودک‌-مجرم به اعدام

NOVEMBER 2, 2018

Iran Human Rights (IHR); November 1, 2018: A juvenile offender was sentenced to death on a murder charge.

According to the Iranian newspaper, Javan, a prisoner was sentenced to qisas (retribution in kind) on a murder charge. The newspaper published the prisoner’s first name as Pouyan and emphasized that he killed a person during a fight at the age of 17. Branch 7 of Tehran’s Criminal Court issued the verdict; however, the paper did not reveal any information about the date of the hearing and issuance of the verdict.

It seems the court did not send the juvenile offender to the forensics to estimate his full mental development. The mental development estimation is possible under Article 91 of the Islamic Penal Code and can potentially save a juvenile offenders life.

According to Article 91 of Iran's revised Islamic Penal Code, it is up to the presiding judge's discretion to deem the juvenile mature enough to understand the nature of the offense:  "In the cases of offenses punishable by hadd or qisas, if mature people under eighteen years do not realize the nature of the crime committed or its prohibition, or if there is uncertainty about their full mental development, according to their age, they shall be sentenced to the punishments prescribed in this chapter."

Otherwise, the Islamic Penal Code puts the age of criminal responsibility for males at 15 and 9 for females.

Mehdi Hajati Banned From Shiraz City Council For Seeking Release of Detained Baha’isمهدی حجتی از شورای شهر شیراز برای رهایی از بهاییان بازداشت شده ممنوع شده است

Shiraz City Council member Mehdi Hajati made national news in Iran after he was arrested for seeking the release of two Baha’is who were arrested for their faith, which is severely persecuted against in Iran. Hajati, 39, has since been put on “surveillance” and banned from his seat on the council.

NOVEMBER 1, 2018

Iran’s judiciary has banned Mehdi Hajati from his seat at the Shiraz City Council because he tried to secure the release of two fellow citizens who were arrested for their Baha’i faith.

“Based on a ruling … approved by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court, Mr. Hajati has been put under judicial surveillance for six months and banned from any activities in the Shiraz City Council,” the state-funded Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) quoted a statement from the council’s public relations office on October 28, 2018.

Sufi Prisoners Illegally Being Held With Dangerous Inmates in Tehran Penitentiary, Say Familiesشرایط نامناسب سالن یک تیپ یک زندان تهران بزرگ و نگهداری دراویش گنابادی در بندهای پرخطر بدون رعایت قانون تفکیک جرایم

NOVEMBER 2, 2018

Dozens of Sufi prisoners are being illegally held in a ward for drug-addicted prisoners in the Great Tehran Penitentiary (GTP), one of their relatives told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI).

The source, who requested anonymity for security purposes, said a complaint by a group of the detainees’ families remains unanswered more than two months after it was filed.

“We, the families, first went to the Tehran Prisons Organization in late September [2018] and were told that the separation of prisoners is none of their business and we have to go to the Prisons Organization’s national headquarters,” the source told CHRI on October 30, 2018.

Iranian Journalist Could Face Death Penalty for Allegedly “Insulting” Shia Prophetبازداشت پویان خوشحال به اتهام توهین به مقدسات به دلیل استفاده از واژه «درگذشت» به جای «شهادت»

Pouyan Khoshhal Fired From Reformist Ebtekar Newspaper

OCTOBER 31, 2018

Pouyan Khoshhal Fired From Reformist Ebtekar Newspaper

Iranian journalist Pouyan Khoshhal has been arrested in Tehran and charged with a crime that could carry the death penalty for using the word “demise” instead of “martyrdom” while referring to a revered figure of Shia Islam.

He was also fired from the reformist Ebtekar newspaper, which issued an apology instead of defending the journalist.