Shabtabnews In this dark night, I have lost my way – Arise from a corner, oh you the star of guidance.
rferl.org – An uncle of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman who died while in police custody for an alleged hijab infraction, has been handed a stiff prison sentence for comments he made about the protests sparked by his niece’s death that were critical of the Islamic regime.
Safa Aeli, according to Hengaw, a group that closely tracks human
rights violations in Iran, was sentenced by Branch 1 of the Islamic
Revolutionary Court in the western city of Saqqezto to a total of five
years, four months, and 17 days in prison on charges of “participation
in a gathering and conspiracy against internal security,” “propaganda
against the system,” and “insulting the leader of the Islamic Republic.”
Aeli was arrested
by security forces in a raid on his home on September 21, the eve of
the first anniversary of Amini’s death, which triggered massive unrest
around the country. Hengaw said he was “brutally assaulted” during his 42 days in detention before being released on bail.
According to Hengaw, the most severe sentence is for the conspiracy charge, for which he was handed three years, six months, and one day. According to Iranian law, that sentence will be the only one carried out.
Hengaw added that one-third of the conspiracy sentence is suspended for three years, conditional upon Aeli refraining from associating with anyone arrested during September commemorations of the anniversary of Amini’s death. He must also report to the Intelligence Office and complete three educational, ethical, and religious courses.
Tensions between the government and the families of those killed or arrested in the nationwide protests rose in the months before and just after the first anniversary of Amini’s death.
The government has been accused of stepping up the pressure on the
victims’ families through collective arrests and the summoning of
grieving families by security agencies with the aim of keeping them from
commemorating the lives of their loved ones, which the government fears
will trigger further unrest.
Reports indicate that on the anniversary of Amini’s death, security forces prevented her family from visiting her grave.
The public anger at Amini’s death has been widely seen as one of the
biggest threats to Iran’s clerical establishment since the foundation of
the Islamic republic in 1979.
At least 500 people have been killed around the country since the
authorities began the current crackdown on her sympathizers, with
thousands more detained or harassed.
