HRANA, August 9, 2022. –
Haamed Farqaani Naamaqi (حامد فرقانی نامقی), a Bahai living in Karaj, received a telephone call on August 9, summoning him to appear at the offices of the Ministry of Intelligence today, August 10, at 8:00 am. I do not yet have an update on that.
HRANA, July 31, 2022. –
On July 31, the home of Saha Thaabeti-Rahmaani (سها ثابتی (رحمانی)) in Sari was raided by security agents, who seized some personal effects including her cell phone, and arrested her. It is not known where she is being detained. Other Bahai homes in Sari, belonging to Saanaaz `Alizaadeh (ساناز علیزاده), Thoraya Monuchehr-zaadeh-Mithaaqi (ثریا منوچهرزاده (میثاقی)) and Navid Mithaaqi (نوید میثاقی) were also raided. In Gonbad-e Kavus, the homes of Aazaadeh Yakini (آزاده یقینی) and Afsaaneh Tashakor (افسانه تشکر) were raided, and in Maahshahr, the home of Afnaaneh Ansaari (افنانه انصاری) was raided, and she was detained for a few hours. In Shiraz, the homes of Ehsaan Jaabri (احسان جابری) and Behaar Bengaleh (بهار بنگاله) were raided, and in Mashhad, the home of Farideh Hedaayati (فریده هدایتی). In Karaj, the home of Bita Mumtaazi-Saraaf (بیتا ممتازی (صراف)) and Puya Mumtaazi-Saraaf (پویا ممتازی (صراف)) was raided, and in Gorgan the homes of Shafaq Fahandezh (شفق فهندژ), Shakib Modi-Masumi (شکیب مودی (معصومی)), Afsun Modi-Masumi (افسون مودی (معصومی)), Shaqayeq Pourenayati (شقایق پورعنایتی) and Neda Taa`ifi (ندا طائفی) were raided.
HRANA, July 31, 2022. –
The homes and work places of brother and sister Nima Haqaar (نیما حقار) and Nazila Haqaar (نازیلا حقار) in Tehran, and the home of Saabin Yazdaani (سابین یزدانی) in Karaj were raided by security agents on July 31. During the search of Ms. Yazdaani’s house, the agents seized all her digital devices and those of her family members. The agents also searched the work place of Nima and Nazila Haqaar.
HRANA, 31 July 2022. –
Following on today’s previous report from Karaj, that the homes of Kaamyaar Habibi (کامیار حبیبی), Saamaan Ostovaar (سامان استوار) and Mozaffar Nabili (مظفر نبیلی) were raided, HRANA now reports that `Afif Na’imi (عفیف نعیمی) and Saamaan Ostavaar were arrested, and that the homes of Nasir Heravi (نصیر هروی) and Saara Sha’baan (سارا شعبان) were raided and and some of their personal effects, including mobile phones, electronic devices, and printed material relating to the Bahai Faith were seized. Correcting the earlier report, it appears that only one workplace was searched and sealed: that of Kaamyaar Habibi. The home of `Afif Na’imi was raided in November 2020. In December 2018 he was released at the end of a ten-year prison sentence for his Bahai beliefs. He was the last of the seven Yaran (national facilitators for the Bahai community in Iran) to be released, although they all had 10-year sentences, because during his sentence he was granted two medical furloughs of several months, and had several periods of hospitalisation. He suffers serious heart problems, blood clots, lymph node problems and acute swelling of the throat.
HRANA, July 31, 2022. –
Security forces in Karaj raided the homes and business premises of Kaamyaar Habibi (کامیار حبیبی), Saamaan Ostovaar (سامان استوار) and Mozaffar Nabili (مظفر نبیلی) on July 31. The agents confiscated some of their personal effects, including mobile phones, electronic devices, and printed materials relating to the Bahai Faith. Kaamyaar Habibi and Saamaan Ostovaar are musicians.
A Bahai named Saamaan Ostovaar was arrested in Kerman in 2011 and later charged with teaching the Bahai Faith through humanitarian activities (relating to the earthquake in Bam). However both names are relatively common in Iran.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, August 2021. –
The Review Court for Tehran Province has upheld the one-year sentences of Mr. Ataa-ollah Zaffar (عطاالله ظفر) and `Abbaas Taa’ef (عباس طائف). They were both arrested on September 27, 2019, following home raids by agents from the Ministry of Intelligence. They were charged with undermining national security by leading and participating in the Bahai sect. It appears that the home raids, in Tehran and Karaj, related to Bahai burials in Tehran, where Mr. Zaffar was involved with a Bahai cemetery. Mr. Taa’ef was freed on bin on November 25, 2019; I do not know when Mr. Zaffar was bailed.
The Review Court judge was Seyyed Ahmad Zargar (قاضی سیداحمد زرگر), with Counsellor `Abbas`Ali Houzaan (عباسعلی حوزان).The verdict was dated July 6.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, July 28, 2021. –
Bahai researcher and author Touraj Amini ( تورج امینی) was released from Karaj Prison on July 28 after serving a six-month prison sentence. In June, 2020, he was sentenced by the Revolutionary Court in Karaj to one year in prison and two years of exile from the city, but this was reduced to a six-month sentence by the Review Court. He was charged with “propaganda against the regime.”
On August 4, 2019, security forces searched his home, seizing books and notes and a laptop. Mr. Amini was previously detained for a short time, in March 2008. His books include one on the role of religious minorities in the Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911, “The Hidden Awakening” (رستاخیز پنهان), on the relationship between Iranians intellectuals and the Babi and Bahai Faiths, and a five-volume collection of source documents relating to the Bahais in Iran.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, April 8, 2021. –
Mr. Houman Khoushnam (هومن خوشنام), Mrs. Ilhaam Salmaanzaadeh (الهام سلمانزاده), Mr. Payaam Sha’baani (پیام شعبانی ), Mr. Keyaanush Salmaanzaadeh (کیانوش سلمانزاده), Mr. Soroush Agaahi (سروش آگاهی), Parvaan Ma`navi (پروان معنوی), Mrs. Jamileh Paakrou (جمیله پاکرو), Mr. Paymaan Ma’navi (پیمان معنوی) and Mrs. Neda Shabaani (ندا شبانی) have been summoned to report to prison within five days to serve one-year sentences. [In this HRANA report, Mr. Sha’baani is mentioned as Payaam Shabaani (پیام شبانی).] They are Bahais from Karaj and Andisheh. They were charged with propaganda against the regime through activity and propaganda for the Bahais. They were arrested in September and November, 2018, and the trial was held on July 27, 2019, and sentences were announced on August 6. The trial judge was Judge Panahi (قاضی پناهی). The Provincial review court that confirmed their sentences was headed by Judge Seyyed-Ahmad Zargar (قاضی سید احمد زرگر) and Counsellor ‘Abbaas-`Ali Houzaan (عباسعلی حوزان). It was Judge Zargar who confirmed the outrageous 10-year sentence handed down to the Bahai scholar and translator Faruq Izadinia (فاروق ایزدی نیا ), and the five-year sentence of Samin Maqsudi (ثمین مقصودی).
At the time of their arrest, agents searched the homes of some of these detainees and seized personal belongings, including books, computers, laptops and mobile phones. The business premises of some of them were also sealed after their arrest.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, January 30, 2021. –
On January 29, Bahai researcher and author Touraj Amini ( تورج امینی) was summoned to the Prosecutor’s office and taken to Karaj Central Prison, near Tehran, to begin his six-month sentence. He was originally sentenced by the Revolutionary Court in Karaj to one year in prison and two years of exile from the city, but this was reduced by the Alborz Provincial Review Court. On August 4, 2019, security forces searched his home, seizing books and notes and a laptop, and he was previously detained for a short time, in March 2008. He was charged with “propaganda against the regime.”
His books include one on the role of religious minorities in the Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911; “The Hidden Awakening” (رستاخیز پنهان), on the relationship between Iranians intellectuals and the Babi and Bahai Faiths; a five-volume collection of source documents relating to the Bahais in Iran, and a volume of “Documents of Contemporary Zoroastrians of Iran.”
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Mahsa Foruhari
Sima Fattaahi-Mirshekaarlu
In two separate items, HRANA has reported that Mahsa Foruhari (مهسا فروهری), a Bahai student from Karaj, and Sima Fattaahi-Mirshekaarlu (شیما فتاحی میرشکارلو), a Bahai studying in Urmia (Urumiyyeh), have been barred from tertiary education because of their Bahai beliefs. Ms. Foruhari registered for the tenth consecutive year for entrance to tertiary education with exemption from the University Entrance examination. This exemption is available to those with good academic records, and her average was just over 19 [out of 20, presumably]. Nevertheless she was rejected for “incomplete file” – the usual term used when students are excluded because of Bahai beliefs. After the most recent University Entrance examination, HRANA reported 21 other cases of Bahais excluded from university for “incomplete file.”
Ms. Fattaahi, who began a Master’s degree in International Law at Urmia Azad University about two years ago, received a message on the university website on January 17, saying that she was barred from defending her dissertation and continuing postgraduate studies because of her adherence to the Bahai Faith. This message refers to a letter dated December 29, 2099 regarding the the exclusion of Bahai students and the expulsion of Ms. Fattaaahi. The report does not explain who wrote the letter, but the image caption says it is from the “Security Office,” the on-campus branch of the the Ministry of Intelligence. Presumably it was addressed to the University, who had no choice but to obey.
https://iranwire.com/fa/news/kerman/44103
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, December 31, 2020. –
A review court for Tehran Province, headed by Judge Seyyed-Ahmad Zargar (قاضی سید احمد زرگر) and Counsellor ‘Abbaas-`Ali Houzaan (عباسعلی حوزان), has confirmed the one-year sentences of nine Bahais from Karaj that were announced by a Revolutionary Court in August this year. It was Judge Zargar who, earlier this year, confirmed the outrageous 10-year sentence handed down to the Bahai scholar and translator Faruq Izadinia (فاروق ایزدی نیا ), and the five-year sentence of Samin Maqsudi (ثمین مقصودی).
The Bahais whose one-year sentences were announced today are Mr. Houman Khoushnam (هومن خوشنام), Mrs. Ilham Salmanzadeh (الهام سلمانزاده), Mr. Payaam Sha’baani (پیام شعبانی ), Mr. Keyaanush Salmaanzaadeh (کیانوش سلمانزاده), Mr. Soroush Agaahi (سروش آگاهی), Mr. Parvan Ma`navi (پروان معنوی), Mrs. Jamileh Paakrou-Mohammad-Hosseini (جمیله پاکرو محمدحسینی), Mr. Paymaan Ma’navi (پیمان معنوی) and Mrs. Neda Shabaani-Bik-Aqaa’i (ندا شبانی بیوک آقایی). They were charged with propaganda against the regime through activity and propaganda for the Bahais. They were arrested in September and November, 2018, and are at present free on bail. The trial was held on July 27, and sentences were announced on August 6. The trial judge was Judge Panahi (قاضی پناهی).
At the time of their arrest, agents searched the homes of some of these detainees and seized personal belongings, including books, computers, laptops and mobile phones. The business premises of some of them were also sealed after their arrest.
The case of Maryam Ghaffaarmanesh (مریم غفارمنش) is also pending before the same court. She was one of five Bahais arrested at a meeting for environmental education in Karaj on September 16, 2018.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, December 2, 2020. –
Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی), who began a 4-month sentence in Karaj central prison on December 1, was released on December 2 for health reason. He was accused of propaganda against the regime and in favour of the Bahai Faith. Due to extensive injuries sustained in multiple actions during the Iran-Iraq war (he was wounded three times in Dehlawieh, Susangard, and Ahvaz), he requires constant medical care. The report suggests that he has lodged bail, since it says he can apply to have to returned to him after four months.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, December 1, 2020. –
Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی) was arrested at his home in Baghastan (Karaj) on December 1 and taken to Karaj central prison to begin his 4-month sentence. He was given a one-year sentence by Judge `Assef Al-Husseini (قاضی عاصف الحسینی), on a charge of propaganda against the regime and in favour of the Bahai Faith. This was reduced to four months by the Provincial Court of Review. [The previous report on Sen’s Daily (May 11, 2020) said that the Review Court had confirmed the one-year sentence.] He was arrested in Karaj on August 3, 2019, and released on bail on September 2.
Update, December 3: Unconfirmed reports say that he was released soon after arriving at the prison, for health reasons.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, November 25, 2020. –
On the morning of Sunday, November 22, in simultaneous operations in various cities across Iran, security agents raided at least 23 Bahai homes. Radio Farda cites estimates that 30 to 50 Bahai homes were raided. The security agents seized personal belongings, including laptops, mobile phones, personal computers, cash, bank cards, real estate documents, identification documents, and books relating to the Bahai Faith. The home raids confirmed by HRANA in Tehran targetted Niki Khaanjaani (نیکی خانجانی), Riaz Sobhaani (ریاض سبحانی), `Arshi Moqaddam (عرشی مقدم), Homa Etemaadi (هما اعتمادی), Shahla Hekmat-Sho`aar (شهلا حکمت شعار), Ataa’ullah Ashrafi (عطاءالله اشرفی) and, in the outlying suburb of Baaba Salmaan, the home of Jamshid Shah Mohammadi (جمشید شاه محمدی); in Karaj, near Tehran, it was the homes of `Afif Na’imi (عفیف نعیمی), Shaahrokh Taa’ef (شاهرخ طائف), Sirous Mithaaqi (سیروس میثاقی), Taaher Safaajou (طاهر صفاجو), Anis Safaajou (انیس صفاجو) and Shahraam Safaajou (شهرام صفاجو); in Isfahan, the homes of Khosrou Shafi`zaadeh (خسرو شفیع زاده), Elhaam Amiri (الهام امیری), Ehsaan Makaari (احسان مکاری) and Bahaador Mota’aarafi (بهادر متعارفی); in Kerman, the home of Naaser Nabili (ناصر نبیلی); in Mashhad, the home of Peymaaneh Naamdaar (پیمانه نامدار). The report does not specify the location of the homes of the following Bahais who were targetted in the raid: Daariush Diaani ( داریوش دیانی), Parvin Naamdaar (پروین نامدار), Faribar Behin-aa’in (فریبر بهین آیین) and Naaser Dalili (ناصر دلیلی). The workplace of Anis Safaajou ( انیس صفاجو), in Mehrshahr, a suburb of Karaj, was also raided.
The reports have been collected in an adhoc way, and may be revised. Initially, individual reports were noted by the human rights activist Mehdi Mahmoudian (مهدی محمودیان), who published them on Twitter, leading to more reports being forwarded to him. HRANA, an organisation with the experience and connections to verify the reports, has not completed its work.
The picture of a chaotic room that is used by HRANA in its report is a stock image predating the recent raids.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Iran Press Watch, August 17, 2020. –
HRANA reports that Liza Tebyanian, a Bahai living in Karaj, was arrested by security forces on the evening of Saturday, August 16, and taken to an unknown location. The grounds for her arrest and the charges against her remain unknown.
She was previously detained on March 16, 2017, and was released on bail from Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj on April 26. In August 2017, she was sentenced to 7 months in prison by Branch 4 of the Karaj Revolutionary Court on charges of “propaganda activities against the regime.”
Branch 12 of the Alborz Court of Appeals acquitted Ms. Tebyanian of the charges against her, arguing that teaching the Bahai faith was not propaganda against the regime.
HRANA, August 6, 2020. –
The Revolutionary Court in Shahriar, which lies between Karaj and Eslamshahr on the Western fringe of Tehran, has sentenced nine Bahais to one year in prison for ‘propaganda against the regime.’ They are Mr. Keyaanush Salmaanzaadeh (کیانوش سلمانزاده), Mrs. Jamileh Paakrou (جمیله پاکرو), Mr. Paymaan Ma’navi (پیمان معنوی), Mr. Payaam Sha’baani (پیام شعبانی ), Mr. Parvan Ma`navi (پروان معنوی), Mrs. Ilham Salmanzadeh (الهام سلمانزاده), Mr. Houman Khoushnam (هومن خوشنام), Mrs. Neda Shabaani (ندا شبانی (بیوک آقایی)) and Mr. Soroush Agaahi (سروش آگاهی). They were arrested in September and November, 2018, and are at present free on bail. The trial was held on July 27, and sentences were announced on August 6. The trial judge was Judge Panahi (قاضی پناهی).
At the time of their arrest, agents searched the homes of some of these detainees and seized personal belongings, including books, computers, laptops and mobile phones. The business premises of some of them were also sealed after their arrest.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, June 8, 2020. –
Bahai researcher and author Touraj Amini ( تورج امینی) has been sentenced by the Revolutionary Court in Karaj to one year in prison and two years of exile from the city. He was charged with “propaganda against the regime,” although his books were cited as evidence, and they relate to the Qajar and Pahlavi periods, not the present regime. On August 4, 2019, security forces searched his home, seizing books and notes and a laptop. Mr. Amini was previously detained for a short time, in March 2008. His books include one on the role of religious minorities in the Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911, “The Hidden Awakening” (رستاخیز پنهان), on the relationship between Iranians intellectuals and the Babi and Bahai Faiths, and a five-volume collection of source documents relating to the Bahais in Iran.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, May 11, 2020. –
Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی) has been summoned to a Revolutionary Court in Karaj, although he has already been tried and sentenced by another Revolutionary Court judge in Karaj. This report does not indicate when he is to appear at the court. He was arrested in Karaj on August 3, 2019, and released on bail on September 2. At the time, government-sponsored media claimed that Mr. Zibaa’i’s arrest was in relation to a scheme to tighten the economic sanctions against Iran. He requires constant medical supervision because of wounds suffered in the Iran-Iraq war, requiring the amputation of one foot and the loss of one kidney and part of his liver, and various other injuries and ailments. Because he is a Bahai, he is excluded from the support given to war veterans. He was given a one-year sentence by Judge `Assef Al-Husseini (قاضی عاصف الحسینی), on a charge of propaganda against the regime and in favour of the Bahai Faith. The provincial review court has confirmed that sentence, so it is possible that his summons is the beginning of his imprisonment.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, April 29, 2020. –
The Review Court for Alborz Province has confirmed the one-year sentences previously handed down by Judge `Assef Al-Husseini (قاضی عاصف الحسینی) in a Revolutionary Court in Karaj for Abu Al-Fadl Ansaari (ابوالفضل انصاری), Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی), Ru’in Kohansaal (روئین کهنسال) and Muhammad-Sadeq Reza’i (محمدصادق رضایی). They were informed of the decision on April 28. They were charged with propaganda against the regime and in favour of the Bahai Faith. The court rejected the defence that teaching the Bahai Faith is a religious matter. This arises from the previous finding of the Review Court for Alborz Province, in the case of Liza Tebyanian Enayati (لیزا تبیانیان ( عنایتی), that teaching the Bahai Faith is not equivalent to “propaganda against the regime” and is not a crime. It appears that it is again a crime, at least in Alborz Province.
Ruhollah Zibaa’i and Ru’in Kohansaal were arrested in Karaj in 2019, on August 3 and 4, respectively, and released on bail on September 2. At the time, government-sponsored media claimed that Mr. Zibaa’i’s arrest was in relation to a scheme to tighten the economic sanctions against Iran. He requires constant medical supervision because of wounds suffered in the Iran-Iraq war, requiring the amputation of one foot and the loss of one kidney and part of his liver, and various other injuries and ailments. Because he is a Bahai, he is excluded from the support given to war veterans.
Abu-Fadl Ansaari was arrested at his home in Karaj on August 3, 2019, and held in Raja’i Shahr prison. He was released on bail in Karaj on September 8. He has a heart condition and relies on a pacemaker.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even
older news is here.
HRANA, January 26, 2020. –
Abu-Fadl Ansaari (ابوالفضل انصاری), Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی), u’in Kohansaal (روئین کهنسال) and Muhammad-Sadeq Reza’i (محمدصادق رضایی) have been sentenced to one year in prison by a Revolutionary Court in Karaj. Mr. Reza’i’s arrest was not previously reported on Sen’s Daily. They were charged with propaganda against the regime and supporting the Bahai Faith. The sentence was announced to them by text message on January 26. They went to the court office to see the text of the court ruling, which they were allowed to transcribe. The trial was conducted on January 18, without the presence of a defence lawyer, and the defendants, in protest, did not speak. The Revolutionary Court’s verdict refers to the claim that “Bahai propaganda” is a religious matter [not a crime]. This arises from the finding of the Review Court for Alborz Province, in the case of Liza Tebyanian Enayati (لیزا تبیانیان ( عنایتی), that teaching the Bahai Faith is not equivalent to “propaganda against the regime” and is not a crime. The Revolutionary Court in Karaj takes note of the views of these “colleagues” (more senior judges) “who were not familiar with security issues, or were ignorant of religious and doctrinal matters, or knew nothing of the Israel-based House of Justice, the English-born bastard of this old fox [England],” but finds the facts in the file sufficient to convict the four men under “article 500” of the Penal Code (i.e., propaganda against the regime).
Ruhollah Zibaa’i and Ru’in Kohansaal were arrested in Karaj, on August 3 and 4, respectively, and released on bail on September 2. At the time, government-sponsored media claimed that Mr. Zibaa’i’s arrest was in relation to a scheme to tighten the economic sanctions against Iran. He requires constant medical supervision because of wounds suffered in the Iran-Iraq war, requiring the amputation of one foot and the loss of one kidney and part of his liver, and various other injuries and ailments (I cannot make out which are war injuries ~Sen).
Abu-Fadl Ansaari was arrested at his home in Karaj on August 3, 2019, and held in Raja’i Shahr prison. He was released on bail in Karaj on September 8. He has a heart condition and relies on a pacemaker.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, December 31, 2019. –
A Revolutionary Court in Tehran has sentenced Kaamraan Shahidi (کامران شهیدی), a Bahai from Karaj, to five years in prison and the confiscation of his assets. The Judge was Muhammad Moqayesseh ( قاضی محمد مقیسه) a notorious abuser of human rights and legal procedures. Mr. Shahidi was arrested by agents from the Ministry of Intelligence on September 25, 2017. His business, as a gold trader, was also shut down, and its entire holdings of gold — about 2 kilograms — were seized, along with some currency. The arresting agents also went to the home of his sister and daughter and seized all the gold, along with books and pictures relating to the Bahai Faith. He was held in solitary confinement for 21 days and interrogated closely. was released on bail from Evin Prison in Tehran on October 18, 2017. Bail was set at 500 million tumans (123,00 euros ; $US 145,000). A source said that prior to his initial arrest, Mr. Shahidi was making jewelry with Bahai symbols. A woman who claimed to be a Bahai approached him, and drugged him using fruit juice so that he became unconscious. The woman then stole gold and cash. When Mr. Shahidi reported the theft to police, they arrested him.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Iran Wire, December 12, 2019. –
On November 30, Peymaan Damashqi (پیمان دمشقی), a Bahai from Karaj, was summoned to Ghezel Hesar prison in Karaj to begin a 6-month sentence on the charge of “propaganda against the regime in the form of promoting the Bahai Faith in cyberspace.” I previously reported that he was sentenced to one year in prison by the Revolutionary Court, in a 10-minute trial. On November 13, this was reduced to six months, by the Provincial Review Court, although neither the defendant nor his lawyer knew of the Review Court hearing.
Bahai prisoners, and other prisoners of conscience in Karaj, are usually sent to Raja’i Shahr prison: Ghezel Hesar has been for people who have actually committed a crime. It is Iran’s largest prison. Mr. Damashqi had asked to be imprisoned with the other Bahai men in Raja’i Shahr, but was told that Raja’i Shahr was for prisoners whose files were supervised by the Ministry of Intelligence, whereas his case fell under the Revolutionary Court. His lawyer said that he may have been sent to Ghezel Hesar because his sentence was short.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Campaign for Prisoners of Conscience, November 19, 2019. –
Naaser Rajab (ناصر رجب), a Bahai from Gohardasht, a suburb of Karaj, was arrested in his home on November 16. Seven agents, without a court order, came to his home to arrest him. They also seized some personal effects, including a mobile phone. It is not known where he is being held.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Iran Wire, October 14, 2019. –
On September 21, Paymaan Damashqi (پیمان دمشقی), a Bahai from Karaj, was sentenced to one year in prison by the Revolutionary Court. The trial, lasting less than 10 minutes, was held on September 19. The trial is reported to have taken place at both the Prosecutor’s office and the revolutionary court, suggesting that the Prosecutor also acted as Judge, which would be highly unusual. A relative said that Mr. Damsashqi did not accept the charge of “propaganda against the regime” and did not know what it was based on. Therefore he has not, thus far, made any comment on it himself. He was initially summoned in writing by the Police in Karaj in February this year. When he went to the Police station, his mobile telephone was confiscated and he was questioned for half an hour. He was told that he had posted an article entitled “Justice” under the pen-name “A certain Bahai”, and the use of this name constituted, indirectly, propaganda for the Bahai Faith. When he asked to see the article attributed to him, the interrogator refused. In April/May this year he was summoned to the Revolutionary Court (the ideological court) to hear the charges against him. During the hearing, the Judge twice asked him in writing [sic] “have you made propaganda for the Bahai Faith” to which he replied, “until now, nobody has asked me about Bahai.” The Judge offered him release on bail of 50 million tumans, but he was not able to pay that amount. Two days later he was released when the business licence of a friend was accepted as bail. Another source told IranWire that Mr. Damashqi had been sentenced because of a question — not an article — that he had posted, but the Judge had not disclosed what this question was. They [undefined] “told him that because he was a Bahai, a question about justice was propaganda against the regime. Mr. Damashqi, who is active in various groups, still cannot recall what question he asked, in which group, that has led to his punishment, but thinks it must have been in comments on a thread.
In recent days, Sima Behrouzi (سیما بهروزی) was sentenced to three months in prison in the Revolutionary Court of Yazd, presided over by Judge Dashtipour (قاضی دشتی‌پور). She was charged with membership of a group opposing the regime. The Judge did not find her guilty of the other charge, of circulating jokes in favour of opposition groups. She was summoned in writing by the Police in Yazd on March 20 this year, and questioned about her membership of Telegram groups. After some time she was summoned to Branch 4 of the Revolutionary Court, and charged with “membership of a group opposed to the regime” and “propaganda in support of a group opposed to the regime.” Bail was set at 250 million tumans, which she could not provide, but she was released on bail two days later. On July 2, 2019, she was summoned to a hearing on August 18 at the Revolutionary Court. The summons specified the charges as “membership of the Bahai community,” and “Bahai propaganda.” The sentence, of three months in prison, was announced in the last week of September.
In recent years, a number of Bahais in Yazd have been sentenced for activities on internet. Shamim Etehaadi (شمیم اتحادی), a Bahai student excluded from tertiary education, was sentenced for filming a Bahai cemetery that had been destroyed by agents from the Ministry of Intelligence. He was charged with propaganda against the regime, membership of Bahai organisations, insulting officials, spreading lies and having satellite receiving equipment. The charges relate to his supposed responsibility for a 4-minute video documenting the destruction of the Bahai cemetery in Yazd, which was shown on the Persian-language television network Manoto. He was sentenced to 3 years and three month in prison [previous report: 3 years], 74 lashes, a two-year ban on leaving Iran, and a fine of 40 million rials (1200 euros; $US 1600). He completed his sentence in June 2016. [The article continues with more examples of the persecution of the Bahais of Yazd for internet crimes].
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Campaign for Prisoners of Conscience, September 8, 2019. –
Abu-Fadl Ansaari (ابوالفضل انصاری) was released on bail in Karaj on September 8. He was arrested at his home in Karaj on August 3 and held in Raja’i Shahr prison.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Mr. Zibaa’i
According to two separate reports, on September 2, Ruhollah Zibaa’i (روح‌الله زیبایی) and Ru’in Kohansaal (روئین کهنسال) were released on bail from Raja’i Shahr prison, in Karaj, where they have been detained for one month. They were arrested in Karaj, on August 3 and 4, respectively, along with Abu-Fadl Ansaari (ابوالفضل انصاری), arrested on August 3. On the same day, agents from the Ministry of Intelligence in Birjand arrested Farid Moqadam-Ziraki (فرید مقدم زیرکی). The Provincial command of the Ministry of Intelligence in South Khorasan Province had previously announced the arrest of an unnamed Bahai in Birjand, who was said to be working to tighten sanctions. Government-sponsored media have also claimed that Mr. Zibaa’i’s arrest was in relation to a scheme to tighten the economic sanctions. He is described as conducting business activities in the Alborz and Southern Khorasan provinces.
Mr. Kohansal
The physical condition of Mr. Zibaa’i and Mr. Ansaari is not good. Mr. Zibaa’i has been released on bail “temporarily” rather than “pending trial,” suggesting that this may be a medical release. Mr. Kohansaal has been bailed pending his trial. It appears that Mr. Ansaari is still being detained. He suffers from a heart condition and has recently had a pacemaker fitted.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
Campaign for prisoners of conscience, August 27, 2019. –
Ru’in Kohansaal (روئین کهنسال), a Bahai from Karaj, was arrested in the street on August 4, but this arrest was not previously reported on Sen’s Daily. He is still undergoing interrogation at a detention centre in Karaj. There is no official news, although a relative living outside Iran suggested that the authorities viewed his Bahai beliefs as a threat to the Islamic Republic.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
HRANA, August 8, 2019. –
On August 4, security forces in Karaj searched the home of Bahai researcher and author Touraj Amini ( تورج امینی), seizing books and notes, as well as personal belongings. He was told to expect a summons to the office of the Ministry of Intelligence in the next few days. Mr. Amini was previously detained for a short time, in March 2008. His books include one on the role of religious minorities in the Constitutional Revolution of 1906-1911, and “The Hidden Awakening” (رستاخیز پنهان), on the relationship between Iranians intellectuals and the Babi and Bahai Faiths.
Older items can be found in the archive, here. Even older news is here.
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