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Iranwire – Judicial authorities in Kurdistan province returned Sunni cleric Mohammad Khezrnejad to Sanandaj Central Prison on Tuesday after refusing to extend his 10-day medical leave.
Khezrnejad appeared at the Sanandaj Prosecutor’s Office on Monday to seek an extension of his medical leave, but officials denied his request and ordered him back to prison the same day.
At least three specialist physicians in internal medicine, gastroenterology, and urology confirmed Khezrnejad’s serious need for special medical care and surgery.
The prosecutor’s office disregarded the medical certificates and documents and told him to return to prison and request another leave from there.
A source told IranWire that prison and prosecutor officials had previously assured Khezrnejad that his leave extension would be granted if he met only immediate family members.
The cleric complied with this condition throughout his leave and avoided meeting with other Sunni clerics and activists, according to the source.
Authorities arrested Khezrnejad in November 2022 after he delivered a critical speech at the funeral of a victim of the crackdown on the Woman, Life, Freedom protests in Bukan.
He was transferred to the Revolutionary Guards Intelligence detention center and later to Urmia Prison.
The Urmia Revolutionary Court sentenced him to death in 2023 on charges of “corruption on Earth, undermining the country’s territorial integrity, and propaganda against the system,” along with 16 years in prison.
Relatives and supporters say the verdict was based on fabricated charges by security agencies.
Following public support, protests from Sunni clerics, and a retrial request by his lawyers, the sentence was reduced to 25 years in prison.
Human rights monitors have reported that Khezrnejad was also physically assaulted during the arrest process.
He has denied all the accusations against him as baseless.
