Iran: other

Iranian Minister of Health said that 4 people died and 110 people got infected by an outbreak of cholera.
The disease is reported in the capital Tehran and five other provinces.
Cholera is caused by a bacteria in contaminated water or food.
The source for the cholera outbreak is according to the Minister, a lack of sanitation as well as contaminated well water.


Azerbaijan delivered the first oiltransport since the war in Georgia disrupted the transports, for transit through Iran for Europe.
An official of the Oil Ministry said that Azerbaijan will export between 4,000 to 10,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
At the moment the transit of crude oil from Central Asia is 50,000 to 100,000 barrels per day, it is expected that this will soon surpass 200,000 barrels per day.



In Khuzestan province are 16 projects of the rural cooperative organization of the province initiated.
They include construction of four cold storages with capacities of 50 tons, 10 workshops of fodder, a unit of concentrate production, a market for direct offer of agricultural commodities and a set of popping device for wheat in 15 cities.
These will create an employment rate of 75 people directly and indirectly.
The provincial network of cooperatives consists of 19 unions of rural and agricultural cooperatives and 176 rural, agricultural and women’s cooperative companies, four unions, 47 credit unions and 40 transportation companies with more than 300 thousand members in
three thousand villages.


In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: reminder

August 28 is in the prison of the city of Semnan a man hanged.
The man Mohammad Hassan B. was sentenced to death for drugstrafficking.




The National Council of Resistance of Iran writes that at a raid in Tehran Wednesdaynight, more then 1600 people have been arrested for "public security and morality reasons".
The deputy prosecutor general of Tehran says that all detainees will be handed over to prosecutors for building a case against them.These will be handled by capital's special court branch number 20.
The raid was held for the "boosting public security plan". Since the start of this plan in April 2007, tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were arrested by the "moral-police".


Friday, August 29, did family and friends commemorate the victims of the "1988 prison massacre" at Khavaran cemetary.
Officers of the State Security Forces (SSF), the Basij forces as well as other security agents were present to prevent this.
Two days prior to the ceremony, the Khavaran district, was cordoned off by the security agents for a two kilometer radius.
A number of the participants were arrested.
At Khavaran cemetary are many of the more then 30,000 mostly political prisoners, buried in massgraves.


The daily Etemad writes that Morteza Eslahchi, former secretary of the Islamic Student Association of the Allameh Tabatabie University and a current member of the association, has been summoned to the Revolutionary Court.
Majid Assadi from the same university, was released on bail after staying 50 days behind bars.



The daily Farda reports that women's rights activists are planning to gather in front of the parliament building for several times next week to protest against the "Family bill" which is pending the parliament's approval.
Article 23 of this law says that men do not need their wives’ permission to take a second wife.
In current law, the permission is necessary.


In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: words

Two earthquakes with a magnitude of 5,3 and 3,5, Richterscale, rocked the city of Dehloran, Ilam province, August 28th, 02.22 and 03.34 hrs local time.
Four people got injured and were transferred to hospital.
Houses were damaged and windows got broken.



On YouTube is a video with words from yesterdays executed Behnam Zare.
A translation there is not available.
Here is a translation in English.


Iran denies to have arrested Kuwaitian fisherman Hussein Al Fudalah.
In July a Kuwaitian blogger wrote that the fisherman is detained in Iran, charged with espionage. The Kuwaitian ambassador in Tehran had told the family that the man will soon be released.
PressTV writes that the Iranian ambassador in Kuwait said that Iran is not holding a Kuwaiti citizen over espionage charges.
Newspapers in Kuwait reported that Al Fudalah was arrested by Iranians when the Iranian military carried out a maneuver in the Persian Gulf.


On the 2nd anniversary of the One Million Signatures Campaign on August 27th,Amnesty International renewed demand that the Iranian authorities cease harassing and imprisoning women’s rights defenders and to restrict their campaigning activities for the repeal of laws and policies which discriminate against women in Iran.

In the two years of the Campaign,women’s rights defenders are facing increasing repression, is discrimination against women in Iran further extended, for instance by the new Family Bill and are some members of the Campaign sentenced to prison or charged in court.



In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: recurring

August 27 are five people hanged in Tehran prison.
One of those executed was Shabnam Parastesh (34) who was sentenced to death for killing her husband.
The identity of the other individuals is not known.



Journalist YosefAzizi Banitruf is after a trial what took two years, sentenced to five years in jail for “acting against national security”, “incitement to rebellion” and “relations with foreign officials”.
He wrote about the excessive use of force against demonstrators at a demonstration in Khuzestan.
He is free while awaiting an appeal.
According to Reporters Without Borders, six of the seven journalists currently in prison in the country are of Kurdish or Arab origin.There is systematically exploiting of the judicial system to crack down on journalists from the minority communities,who often act as spokesperson.


August 25th is Mahboubeh Karami, a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign,released on bail in the amount of 80,000 euro.
She was arrested after criticizing policebrutality against demonstrators in Tehran.
One day after her release she gave an interview to the site Change for Equality .


Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani has left for a visit to the USA, according to a collegue who spoke to Fars newsagency.
Last week several Iranian newspapers reported that her passport was withdrawn in preventing her leaving the country.
The collegue said that the trip took place last week.


The Iran Khodro Group (ICKO) manufactures various vehicle models in seven countries around the globe.
The total productioncapacity is 225,000 vehicles a year.
The value of exports last year was $500 million to a number of countries including France, Russia and Syria.
Currently the company produces 10 vehicles under 54 brand names.

In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: disturbance

August 26 Behnam Zare, was hanged in the prison of Shiraz.
He was convicted of a murder allegedly committed when he was 15 years old.
Neither his lawyer, nor his family were informed that the execution was about to happen.



Human Rights Watch urged the Iranian judiciary to immediately commute the sentences of more than 130 other prisoners facing death for crimes committed while children.
Iran executed 6 minor offenders this year.



According to daily Kargozaran the activist Mostafa Alavi is sentenced to 15 years in prison.
No further details about his charges or the trial were given.
According to some websites Alavi is a doctor and researcher who ran a non-governmental organisation named “Iranian Elite Association” which sought to boost interaction between educated Iranians and global academic centres.
Reports say detained since March 2007 and initially stood trial in January 2008, when he was sentenced to two years in prison for “founding an illegal group.”



Gholamreza Gholamhosseini activist and member of the Tehran Busdrivers Association has been detained more than two months in Section 240 of Evin prison.
He was arrested June 2007 during a ceremony to celebrate women day that was organized by the Tehran municipality and bus services in a sport stadium.
After his arrest he was taken to the prosecutor’s office where charges against him were issued and was transferred to Evin prison.
Based on court-issued orders, he is being kept in an isolated cell in Section 240 of Evin prison.
The charges include disturbing the peace and attempts to undermine national security.

In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: re-arrange

In the city of Yazd security agents of the municipality confiscated short women’s overcoats.
The municipality in charge of the order stated that the actions are aimed at preserving Islamic culture and combating foreign cultural invasion.
The action will take at least till the end of the summerseason.
The same report says that 15 clothesshops have been sealed and forced to shut down for one month for selling short women’s overcoats.
Also in the city of Yazd is a sportscenter for women demolished to make room for the construction of a museum that will display holy relics.
The demolition of the center triggered a wave of protests by female athletes. The governor for Yazd allocated a budget of $3,226,000 to build the museum.



The daily Kargozaran writes that in Tehran two Kurdish students,
Sabah Nasri and Hedayat Ghazali are sentenced to two year in prison for propaganda against the system and participation in an illegal gathering.
Both have been in jail for the past 14 months. When the trial took place was not told.
In the city of Baneh are Siavash Khandani, Heman Farhadi en Raybin Romozi arrested some 1 1/2 month ago and charged with activities against national security for association with Kurdish parties.
All three of them were sentenced to a year in prison, in a court session in the city of Saghez that was not open to the public and where the accused had no access to an attorney.
Matlab Shokohi from Baneh was found guilty of supporting Kurdish parties and is sentenced to one year in prison in exile in Kermanprson.
This case also was held with no legal representation.


The Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei reshuffled the Islamic Republic's Armed Forces.
He appointed Amir Ahmad-Reza Pourdastan as the new Commander of Iran's military Ground Forces.
Brigadier General Mohammad-Hassan Dadras is appointed as the deputy coordinator of the Islamic Republic's Army.
The former deputy coordinator Brigadier General Abdul-Rahim Mousavi, is appointed as the successor to the commander of the Ground Forces.


In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: figure

August 24 is in the city of Tabriz a man hanged.
The man, Bahram was sentenced to death in 1989, for murdering his sister-in-law.




In an airplane crash in Kyrgyzstan have 44 Iranians died, according to IRNA.
The plane from Itek-Air was on its way from Bishkek to Tehran with 90 passengers.
60 people got killed at the crash.
There were 51 foreigners among the passengers, including Iranian, Turkish, Chinese and Canadian nationals.
Also a youth basketballteam was on board.


The daily Mardom Salari reported that 12 people, who were arrested some weeks ago by the police at a demonstration in Lalek Park, Tehran, were released.




In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: timestamp

Sunday, August 24, 09.29 local time, an earthquake occurred near the city of Jayezan, Khuzestan province.
The earthquake measured 4.4 on Richter scale.
There are no reports of damages to buildings or casualties.



Bahman Soleimani (27), is sentenced to death for murdering his grandmother when he was 15.
He is in prison in the city of Isfahan.
Mohammad Mostafaei, lawyer for more than 30 childoffenders, wrote that Soleimani is told that he will be executed in the coming days.



Press-TV reported that Iran is making diplomatic efforts to free the sailors from the hijacked Iranian bulkcarrier.
Thursday, an Iranian bulkcarrier with 29 crew and a Japanese chemical tanker with a crew of 19, were hijacked within the hour in the Gulf of Aden by Somalian pirates.
The managing director of Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) told Saturday that
the Iranian carrier transported 40.000 tons of iron ore from China to the Netherlands.
(picture wikipedia)



Football international Ali Karimi is not invited for next month's World Cup qualification match against Saudi Arabia.
In May Karimi was suspended of playing for the national team after criticizing the Iranian Football Federation (IFF).
After a personal request by Iranian President Ahmadinejad, the IFF announced that the suspension had been lifted.
However, Karimi did not play since then.

In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: 20 years since 1988

August 20 is in the prison of the city of Zahedan, Sistan-e-Baluchestan province, a man hanged.
The man, Bahram Nik-kho was convicted for drugstrafficking.



Because of the 20th Anniversary of 1988 'prison massacre'of Iranian political prisoners starting in August 1988 and continuing until shortly before the tenth anniversary of the Islamic revolution in February 1989,
Amnesty International renews its call for those responsible for the 'prison massacre' to be held accountable.
Between 4,500 and 5,000 political prisoners are believed to have been killed, including women.
Amnesty: "Those responsible for the killings - one of the worst abuses to be committed in Iran - should be prosecuted and tried before a regularly and legally constituted court and with all necessary procedural guarantees, in accordance with international fair trial standards. If found guilty, they should be punished with appropriate penalties which take into account the grave nature of the crimes but which do not include the death penalty or corporal punishments.".
Amnesty is also calling on the present Iranian government not to prevent relatives of the dead from visiting Khavaran Cemetary in south Tehran, on or about 29 August to mark the anniversary.
Hundreds of the executed are buried here, many of them in unmarked mass graves.
(Photo Iranian.com)


The blog Serendip wrote July 26th a blog in which is said that there are already arrests of familymembers of those, buried on Khavaran Cemetary, in the month July. They are temporarily detained to prevent them from visiting Khavaran Cemetary.
Mohsen Naderi (50), one of many political prisoners who were arrested in the early 1980’s, imprisoned from 1981 to 1986 on the charges of being a supporter of Mojahedin’e Khalq, is arrested and placed in a temporary holding cell in the Evin Prison.
Last year familymembers of those buried at Khavaran Cemetaey were arrested and brought to section 209 of Evin prison.
Some of them were later transferred to section 350 of Evin prison and are still imprisoned.
Their names are Mr. Ali Saremi (60), Mr. Mohammad Ali Mansouri, Ms. Misagh Yazdan Nejad and Mr. Naser Sudagari.


In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: reverse

In the prison of Bojnord, Khorasan province, is August 20 a man hanged.
The man, Ali was sentenced to death for murder.




August 14, the International Alliance in Support of Workers in Iran (IASWI) has started an international action to call Iranian government to release the prisoners and to cease all repression of labour activists.
In recent weeks are two women labouractivists Sousan Razani and Shiva Kheirabadi sentenced to lashing and prison.
The verdict states that Sousan Razani is sentenced to 70 lashes and 9 months in prison, which is a much harsher punishment than the original report of 15 lashes.
Abdullah Khani, Seyed Qaleb Hosseini, and Khaled Hosseini are sentenced to lashing and prison, and Afshin Shams is arrested.
Kurdish teacher and labouractivist Farzad Kamangar is sentenced to death and Mansour Osanloo, president of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company is detained since July 2007.
Here is an online-letter which can be mailed to Iranian government.


There is great concern is about the health and physical condition of Emadeddin Baghi, who two weeks ago once again has been transferred to section 209 of Evin prison.
Although his case is completed and has been turned over to the court, interrogations did not stop.
He has been transferred from ward 350 to ward 209, blindfolded and handcuffed, against all legal laws.He shares a cell with another prisoner with access to only one blanket.
Since he refuses to wear a blindfold while it is against constitutional and judicial laws confirmed by the Guardian Council, in an effort to reduce the need to use the bathroom he did eat only twice.
Last week he fell unconscious after interrogation and doctors in Section 209 of Evin prison diagnosed Mr. Baghi’s condition as critical and requiring urgent care.
Tuesday judicial spokesman Ali Jamshidi said that Baghi has another pending case in the court, and he has been transferred to Section 209 to be investigated for this particular case.


In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl

Iran: halted

The blog iran-human-rights.blogspot.com writes that August 20, 6 men are hanged in the prison of Birjand and 2 men are hanged in the prison of Karaj.
No further information is available.



Iranian statetelevision reported that in an accident with a truck in South-Iran 30 illegal Afghans were killed and 67 others got wounded.
The wounded were transported to hospitals in Shiraz.
The cause of the accident is still investigated.




ISNA reported that Iranian filmstar Golshifteh Farahani is banned from travelling to Hollywood. She was on the airport of Tehran to go to Hollywood to study an acting offer.
A reason was not given.

(Photo Payvand.com)



The daily Kargozaran writes that the filmstars and director Ezatollah Entezami, Parviz Parastooi and Kiumars Pour-Ahmadi are
summoned to appear for the prosecutor in Tehran for trying to save the life of a childoffender.
They started an action to fundraise money to pay the "bloodmoney" for Behnoud Shojaee.
Shojaee is convicted for a murder he committed when he was 17-years-old.
According to the newspaper the family of the victim lodged a complaint.



The deathsentence for Shabnam Parastes, 33 has been upheld by the Supreme Court.
In 2006 she is sentenced to death for murdering her husband.
She is imprisoned in Raja'i Shahrte prison in Karaj.
Amnesty International calls for urgent action.



In Iran there are childoffenders, still on death row.

Children are being hanged to death.
A child will be hanged to death.
Poster amnesty.nl