Continuation of Nationwide Protests in Iran Increases Wave of Arrests and Intimidation
With the continuation of protests in Iran, the wave of arrests of citizens, civil and political activists, students, journalists, and lawyers has also increased. According to human rights organizations, by November 10, the number of arrested citizens has been announced to be over 15,000. Security forces are widely arresting protesters individually or in groups, often with repetitive and vague charges.
In one of the latest incidents, the commander of the Imam Reza Corps in Fardis County announced that six citizens have been arrested on charges of, according to him, desecration and setting fire to the Fardis prayer hall. Media affiliated with the Islamic Republic reported on Thursday, November 10, the arrest of Elham Afkari, the sister of Navid Afkari, the executed wrestler in Shiraz. These media have claimed that Ms. Afkari has connections with Iran International network and has played a role in recent protests. Iran International network has denied any connection with Elham Afkari.
Charges that can be brought against any protester, and government agents provide no evidence or documents for them. In another case, Mohammad Ali Azimi, a pilot for Kish Air, was arrested on Wednesday night, November 9, in front of the Ammar Basij base in Tehran and transferred to an unknown location. Besides ordinary citizens, many prominent individuals have also been arrested since the start of the nationwide protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish girl from Saqqez, in the morality police’s custody. These include artists, athletes, journalists, and civil, political, and student activists.
Arrest of Athletes
Kaveh Rezaei, Hamidreza Ali Asgari, and Hossein Mahini, well-known soccer players, were all arrested after expressing sympathy with Mahsa Amini’s family and protesting the arrest of protesters at the beginning of the protests, mainly on charges of inciting people to riot or supporting separatist groups.
Arrested Artists
Shervin Hajipour, singer of the song for Toumaj Salehi, protest rap singer Emad Ghavidel, political and social rap singer Zeinab Mousavi, stand-up comedian from Qom and creator of the character Emperor Kuzco, Saman Yasin, rap singer from Kermanshah, and Nik Yousefi, photographer and filmmaker, are among the prominent artists arrested in recent protests. The names of some poets and writers are also among the detainees, including Mona Borzouei, who was arrested on charges of inciting riots and siding with the enemy.
Arrests in the Field of Journalism
In the meantime, many journalists and reporters have also been arrested. Marzieh Amiri and Niloufar Hamedi, reporters for Shargh newspaper, Elaheh Mohammadi, reporter for Ham-Mihan newspaper, Mandana Sadeghi, journalist from Khuzestan, Yalda Moayeri, news photographer, Nazila Maroufian, journalist and media activist, and Aria Jafari, experienced press photographer, are among these detainees.
Widespread Arrest of Civil and Political Activists
Civil and political activists, as usual, are among the first detainees in most protests. The government does not tolerate their protests and criticisms and sometimes arrests them with full violence. Majid Tavakoli, Hossein Ronaghi, Mohammadreza Jalaeipour, Fatemeh Sepahri, Donya Rad, Arash Sadeghi, Hiwa Masoudi, Neda Naji, Pouran Nazemi, and Bahareh Hedayat are among the activists arrested in recent weeks.
Students at the Forefront of Arrests
Perhaps the most arrests are among students. Human rights organizations have reported that by November 10, the number of arrested students has been announced as 450. Naming the arrested students is beyond the scope of this writing, but most of these students were arrested either during protests inside universities during the day or at night in student dormitories.
Images published on social media depict the violent arrest of many of these students. In reaction to the arrest of students, many students from universities across Iran have recently held gatherings and sit-ins to protest the arrest of their classmates. About a month ago, more than 200 university professors issued a statement condemning the suppression of protesting students and called for support from professors across the country.
Concern About the Fate of the Detainees
What is concerning about the detained individuals is the uncertainty about their fate or place of detention. Many families say that despite continuous follow-up, security and law enforcement officers have not provided them with accurate information. In the meantime, reports have been published of harassment and abuse of detained women by security agents.
Moharebeh, a Charge with the Death Penalty
The judiciary of the Islamic Republic has begun the trial of some of the detainees of recent protests. Last week, the Revolutionary Court accused Sahand Nourmohammadzadeh of moharebeh for setting fire to a trash can and tires. Mr. Nourmohammadzadeh has denied his charges, but the punishment for the charge against him can even reach the death penalty.
Emphasis on Accelerating the Trials of Detainees
Officials of the Islamic Republic insist that the trials of the detainees of recent protests be held quickly, probably to intimidate protesters who continue to take to the streets despite ongoing arrests and crackdowns. Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, head of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, has agreed with the execution of some of the arrested protesters.
Mr. Ejei said in the weekly meeting of the Supreme Judicial Council on Monday, November 7, that someone who has taken up a firearm or knife and used it, and has disrupted the country’s security in collaboration with the enemy or as an enemy agent, and has created fear in areas, and at the same time has killed someone, this person can be sentenced to qisas (retribution) or execution, and other titles may also apply to them.
The charges mentioned by Mr. Ejei are considered moharebeh in the laws of the Islamic Republic, and their punishment is execution. The day before Mohseni-Ejei’s statements, 227 members of parliament also called the protesters moharebs and requested the judiciary to implement the qisas or execution sentence on them.
Meanwhile, some commanders of the Revolutionary Guards have also claimed that the protesters are armed. Hassan Hassanzadeh, commander of the Mohammad Rasulullah Corps in Tehran, has claimed that some of the arrested protesters have used firearms and knives in an organized manner to increase violence and casualties.
From the overall statements of Islamic Republic officials regarding the handling of detainees of recent protests and also the emphasis of the head of the judiciary on holding trials as quickly as possible, it seems that unfair and hasty trials with severe sentences await the detainees, possibly similar to those issued in the courts of the opponents of the Islamic Republic in the 1980s.
In this context, other articles have been published in Iran Gate. If you wish to read them, we have provided a few samples for you.
- Nationwide Protests in Iran and the Right to Self-Determination
- How Not to Get Arrested in Protests
- Turban Tossing: Yes or No
- Execution for Intimidation