“One of His Charges is ‘Receiving an Illegal Prize,’” Says Prominent Lawyer’s Wife

Massoumeh Dehghan, wife of lawyer and co-founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center Abdolfattah Soltani, expressed concern about her husband’s conditions and her lack of contact with him for the past several days. “Mr. Soltani himself told me when he called that his charges are ‘propagating against the regime,’ ‘establishing the Defenders of Human Rights [...]

Iranian Judiciary Hangs Minor, Provides Unprecedented Justification

On Wednesday morning, the Iranian Judiciary hanged a minor for the murder of Iranian athlete Rouhollah Dadashi. Alireza Mollasoltani, who was not yet 18, had confessed to stabbing and murdering Dadashi with a knife. The public execution took place at 4:30 a.m. in Golshahr, Karaj, near Tehran. Though human rights organizations have repeatedly condemned the [...]

UPDATE: Shane Baeur and Josh Fattal Have Left Iran

According to a recent report by IRNA, American hikers Shane Baeur and Josh Fattal were released from Evin Prison, went to directly to Mehrabad airport, and have left Iran. They were released on a $500,000 bail that appears to have been posted by the Omani ambassador to Iran, who went to Evin Prison today with [...]

Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer Released

According to U.S. government sources, American hikers Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer were released today, on bail of $500,000.

Yesterday, 20 Setpember 2011, Massoud Shafiee, lawyer to American hikers Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that his attempts to receive the final signature on the two Americans’ bail orders were fruitless. “This morning (Tuesday), I went to Branch 36 of Tehran Appeals Court, but the second judge whose signature was necessary was not there. I waited for 1.5 hours there, and the Branch Judge told me to leave and that they would contact me as soon as the judge comes. I have not been contacted yet,” said Shafiee.

Female Dervish Arrested To Pressure Her Son

“My mother was arrested in 2005 in Qom, along with about 1,500 other Dervishes, during the demolition of the Qom mosque,” he said about his mother’s prior arrest. “If you follow the news on the Majzooban-e-Noor website, which is the news website for the Gonabadi Dervishes, you will note that not a week goes by without some type of pressure put on Gonabadi Dervishes by security forces through arrests, summonses, etc. We can point out at least 300 instances of this since 2005, for example the pressure following the demolition of the Qom mosque, the Boroujerd mosque, preventing burials at the Bidokht Soltani cemetery, arrests and trials and revocation of licenses of lawyers who represent the Gonabadi Dervishes, group trials of Dervishes, telephone summonses by security forces, etc., during each episode of which several Gonabadi Dervishes were thrown in jail,” he told the Campaign.

“Only One Signature Away From Freedom,” Says Lawyer to Americans

Massoud Shafiee, lawyer of the two imprisoned Americans, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that the two prisoners are only one signature away from freedom. “The judge, whose signature is required, will be on vacation until Tuesday and so we must wait until Tuesday for Josh and Shane’s release,” Shafiee told the Campaign.

Iran Detains Filmmakers While Ahmadinejad is in New York

As Ahmadinejad Visits the UN His Government Detains Independent Filmmakers at Home

(19 September 2011) Iranian authorities should end the ongoing intimidation and arrest of filmmakers and journalists accelerated by the recent detention of six documentary filmmakers, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said today. Diplomats meeting with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on his current visit to New York should challenge him on widespread government attacks on free expression, added the Campaign. “These arrests prove yet again that President Ahmadinejad and his intelligence apparatus have no tolerance for independent filmmakers and journalists,”

Don’t Let Ahmadinejad off the Hook in New York (Video)

(19 September 2011) As Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrives in New York, four New Yorkers who closely follow developments in Iran talk about why the Iranian people expect the media and UN dignitaries to focus primarily on holding Ahmadinejad accountable for Iran’s human rights crisis during their meetings with him.Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran is joined by Professor Hamid Dabashi of Columbia University, Bitta Mostofi, a lawyer and human rights activist, and David Fine. Fine, an undergraduate student at Columbia and managing editor in chief of its newspaper,..

Young Political Activist Receives 50 Lashes for Blogging

Somayeh Tohidlou, political activist and Tehran University Ph.D. student in Sociology, wrote in her blog yesterday that authorities at Evin Prison carried out her sentence of 50 lashes. The flogging took place at Evin Prison just as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took off for New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly. Flogging is an inhumane [...]

Protestant Christians in Shiraz Sentenced to One Year in Prison

Last week an appeals court in the southern city of Shiraz upheld a one year prison sentence for Pastor Behrouz Sadegh-Khanjani of the Protestant Christian group, the Church of Iran, and five other church members, Parviz Khalaj, Amin Afshar Manesh, Mehdi Forutan, Mohammad Baliad, and Nazli Makarian, according to the lawyer for the defendants, Mahmoud Taravatrooy. Taravatorooy told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that his clients, sentenced on the charge of “propaganda against the regime,” do not have the option to appeal the verdict and will soon report to the Revolutionary Court to begin serving their sentence.