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rferl.org – Iran’s judiciary has sentenced Mashallah Karami, the father of executed protester Mohammad Mehdi Karami, to six years in prison on charges of endangering national security and “propaganda against the regime.”
The human rights groups HRANA and Hengaw reported the verdict, which was handed down by the Karaj Revolutionary Court.
His lawyer, Ali Sharifzadeh Ardakani, said Karami has yet to receive the court’s decision officially.
Additionally, he rejected accusations of fraud against his client on social media platforms, noting that related charges of money laundering and acquiring illicit wealth are still under review with no verdicts rendered so far.
Mohammad Mehdi Karami was one of nine individuals executed by the Islamic republic in relation to the protests of 2022, which saw widespread unrest over governmental policies.
His execution in January 2023, which was tied to the alleged murder of a Basij militia member during the nationwide upheaval, drew international condemnation and highlighted the Iranian government’s strict crackdown on dissent.
The sentence handed to Mashallah Karami also appears to be part of a pressure campaign on families of executed protesters.
Mashallah Karami has been a vocal figure in the protest movement, often seen at his son’s grave in acts of remembrance that have symbolized the broader struggle for justice in Iran.
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.
Karami’s arrest and subsequent sentencing also underline the risks faced by those who continue to oppose the regime.
Many Iranians took to the streets in 2022 to protest against declining living standards and a lack of freedoms.
The unrest grew after the death of Mahsa Amini in September of that year. The 22-year-old died under mysterious circumstances while she was in police custody for an alleged head-scarf violation.
The clampdown has resulted in the deaths of approximately 600 demonstrators, as reported by human rights groups, and thousands of arrests.
The Iranian judiciary has also executed several protesters, further inflaming public outcry against the regime’s harsh tactics.
