Human rights

rferl.org : The UN’s special rapporteur on human rights in Iran says there were “increasing restrictions” last year on rights to freedom of expression, liberty, and a fair trial in the country and he assailed Tehran for its high number of executions, including of at least seven children.Javaid Rehman’s comments came in a report — titled Situation Of Human Rights …

rferl.org : Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Iran on August 16 to release women detained for allegedly dressing as men to circumvent a ban on women attending football matches. Reports say six women have been detained since August 12, including Zahra Khoshnavaz, a prominent advocate for ending the ban on women attending public sporting events, and Forough Alaei, an …

Radiofarda – Fourteen workers of the Haft Tapeh Sugarcane Industrial complex in the oil-rich province of Khuzestan, southwest Iran, stood trial on Wednesday, August 14, reports say. The workers are prosecuted for attending a one-hour protest gathering on May 9, to demand their rights, the independent labor union of the complex says. At the court, the fourteen responded to their …

Radiofarda – An award-winning Iranian movie superstar has been banned from appearing on the Islamic Republic’s monopolized TV networks, apparently for protesting the arrest of a female photojournalist. Hanieh Tavassoli and several other famous actors have made public statements condemning the detention of Noushin Jafari, who is a photojournalist focusing on movie stars and celebrities. According to social media reports, …

Iran-HRM – Evin Prison’s authorities have banned all outside communications to family and friends of Farangis Mazloumi. Ms. Farangis Mazloumi had telephone calls with her family every Saturday. But unlike the routine process of the last three weeks, this week she was not allowed to make the telephone call. Prison authorities have issued a 300 million toman bail for her …

Iran-HRM – The Iranian regime on August 11, 2019, arrested Hashem Khastar, a teacher’s representative and a number of others who signed a letter asking for Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to resign. They had gathered in front of a court in the northeastern city of Mashhad to support another individual who has called on Khamenei to step down and pave …

RFL/RE – The U.S. State Department has condemned the recent sentencing of three Iranian women, including a mother and daughter, to combined prison terms of 55 years for protesting laws that make wearing a hijab compulsory. Yasaman Aryani (left), Monireh Arabshahi (center), and Mojgan Keshavarz have been detained since April. “We condemn the Iranian regime for sentencing Yasaman Aryani, Monireh …

VOA- A newspaper in Gibraltar says the United States has applied to seize an Iranian supertanker that authorities in the British overseas territory were seeking to release from detention. The Gibraltar Chronicle says the development means a last minute application by the U.S. Department of Justice to extend the ship’s detention prompted the Supreme Court to adjourn its decision until …

CHRI – Except for a one-minute phone call from Evin Prison, Iranian-British social anthropologist Kameel Ahmady has had no contact with his family since he was detained on August 11, 2019, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has learned. The authorities have also refused to tell his family why he was detained. “I was traveling when Kameel was arrested,” …

gatestoneinstitute – “[T]orture is widely used against suspects after their arrest and in the pre-trial phase in order to extract a confession,” in spite of the fact that “Article 38 of the Iranian Constitution bans all forms of torture and forced confessions.” — Latest Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran, Iran Human Rights. “In 2014, a man who had …