Week 10 - 2012

News of the Prisoners

A-Transfers

• Isa Saharkhiz is moved to CCU after high blood pressure and argument with the guard.
• Severe beating and transfer of Kurdish prisoner Mostafa Salimi to solitary cell.

B- Arrests/Incarcerations

• Bahai Negin Ahmadian was arrested in a raid of her home in Mashhad, PC and items confiscated.
• Shahram Chinian Miandoab, Baha’i sent to Evin to serve his 8 years sentence.
• Maryam Delaram, newly converted Christian, was arrested in Isfahan on 22nd of February.
• Shahram Ghaedi, newly converted Christian, was arrested in Isfahan on 22nd of February.
• Journalist Nazanin Khosravani has been arrested for sentence implementation.
• Bahai Hooriyeh Mohseni was arrested in a raid of her home in Mashhad, PC and items confiscated.
• Mehdi Motamedi Mehr member of the Freedom Movement summoned to Evin Sunday to start serving 5 years sentence.
• Journalist and translator Ali Mousavi Khalkhali was arrested. Reason for arrest unknown.
• Student activist, Rouhollah Rouzitalab , arrested in Shiraz.
• Rahim Sarkar, chief editor in Ghazvin, arrested.
• Shahnaz Zarifi newly converted Christian, was arrested in Isfahan on 22nd of February.
• Student who has participated in Olympiad has been arrested for associating with dissident clerics.

C-Liberations 

• Giti Hakimpour, 78 years old, newly converted Christian, arrested in Isfahan on 22nd of February was released on bail on 25th of February.
• Ali Shekarchi arrested during Feb 14 protest was released on bail.
• Participation Front member/Mousavi supporter Ali Akbar Soroush released from Babol prison after finishing 4 months term.
• Iran Freedom Movement Mohammad Tavasoli has been released on bail on furlough.

D-Other News 

• Jailed Iranian student activist Bahareh Hedayat has been awarded the first Harald Edelstam Prize for her “outstanding courage and commitment to justice” and for actively working “against the violation of Human Rights in Iran”.
• Iranian opposition blogger/publisher Mehdi Khazali has stopped taking liquids, on his 57th day of hunger strike. He stop his dry hunger strike after three days but remains on hunger strike.
• National/Religious activist Saeed Madani continues to be held in solitary banned from visit and  under interrogation.
• On death row Web developer Saeed Malekpour incarcerated illegally in Sepah Ward 2-A and banned from visit since 45 days.
• Detained opposition leader Mousavi and wife were allowed their second visit with daughters in a year on Sunday. Despite rumors, Mir Hossein Mousavi and his wife Zahra Rahnavard are both in good health and did not vote for the last elections.

News of injustice in Iran

• Former student activist Dalir Eskandari has been sentenced to two years + five years suspended by court in Sanandaj.
• Ahmad Gholami, Iranian writer and former editor-in chief of Shargh newspaper, gets one year prison term suspended for 5 years.
• Court of Appeals upheld the 6 months sentence of former President Rafsanjani's daughter Faezeh Hashemi.
• Iran orders retrial of Amir Hekmati the American sentenced to death.
• Appeals reduce Narges Mohammadi’s sentence from 11 to 6 years.
• Sedigheh Moradi sentenced to 10 years prison in Rajaee Shahr.
• Ali Shakoori Rad,  member of Participation Front was sentenced to four years in prison and ten years in exile, and is forbidden from participating in any social activities for another ten years.
• Abdol Fattah Soltani sentenced to 18 years prison in exile in Barazjan and 20 years barred from practice.
• 5 Arab political prisoners executed in public in Iran.
• One public hanging on Thursday in Shirvan.
• At least 676 people were executed according to IHR’s annual report 2011 in Iran. 
• 416 of the 676 executions (62%) were announced by the Iranian authorities.
• 65 executions were carried out in public. This is the highest number of public executions in more than 10 years. At least 4 juvenile offenders were among those executed in Iran in 2011. 
• 3 young men were executed convicted of sodomy in 2011.
• One man was executed convicted of “apostasy” in 2011.
• More than 80% of those executed in 2011 in Iran were convicted of drug trafficking. 
• Only 9% of those officially executed in 2011 in Iran for drug charges were fully identified.
• IHR has received reports of secret or “un-announced” executions in more than 15 different Iranian prisons in 2011.
• More than 70 additional executions reported ,are not included in the annual report due to difficulties in confirming some of details.

University  - Culture

• Record (grade) for students in relation to their clothing will be issued by University professors.
• Trial of newspaper managers of 'Shargh' and 'MellateMa' to be held on March 11.
• Russian lessons installed for theology students in Qom.
• More than ten female students suspended over hijab violations.
• Police ban gathering at New year festival fires.
• Khamenei orders establishment of high council of cyberspace.
• Simin Daneshvar, great novel writer, passed away.

Economy in Iran

• The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has announced the discovery of a huge oil field with considerable crude reserves in southern Iran.
• $1 = 1915 tomans 
• Iranian and Indian Energy Ministers sign a deal for the export of electricity from Iran to India.

Iran  abroad

• William Hague condemns elections in Iran, claiming they were not "free and fair".
• US Navy rescues Iranian boat capsized in Persian Gulf: one sailor rescued, three bodies recovered. 
• Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian in Moscow to discuss Bahrain, Syria.
• France condemns 18 years sentence for Abdolfattah Soltani. 
• "The Iranians have an alliance with the Syrians but we have a commitment to the Syrian people," Senior Hamas official, Ahmed Yousef.
• US Treasury named al-Quds General Gholamreza Baghbaniin, as a key figure in trafficking heroin from Afghanistan.
• Iran Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi is due in Tajikistan to meet president and foreign minister.
• The Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Seyed Mohammad Hosseini, arrived in Indonesia on March 7 to attend the inauguration ceremony of Iranian Cultural Week in Indonesia.

Politics in Iran

• Eight Marja Ayatollahs did not vote in the parliamentary election: Abdolkarim Mousavi Ardabili, Yousef Sanei, Hossein Vahid Khorasani (father-in-law of judiciary chief Sadegh Larijani), Seyyed Mohammad Sadegh Rouhani, Seyyed Sadegh Shirazi, Seyyed Ali Mohammad Dastgheib and Asadollah Bayat Zanjani.
• Ahmadinejad's sister Parvin fails to win parliament seat. She protests her votes count.
• Interior Minister: participation in elections 64.2%.
• Ali Mottahari, vocal principalist, is not re-elected.
• Kavakabian, reformist who unveiled Kharizak scandal, is not re-elected.
• Jannati admits votes were paid for.
• Engineered numbers & fraudulent election: 
• Tehran Province, 2.5 million less voters eligible in 90 than 88
• 380,000 valid votes from 373,000 registered voters in Ilam province
• Astara had 100% eligible voter participation in the election
• Error of Domestic Affairs Minister representative on the TV : turnout was 34% 
• 26,472,760 voted; 48,288,799 eligible to vote; 64.2% voted
• A 2.5 million contradiction in Election statistics; Participation statistics removed from State Department Site 
• Appointment of Saeed Mortazavi, murderer of Zahra Kazemi, and the jailer of Kahrizak, to Social Security Administration has been confirmed.
• Interior Minister: 225 parliamentary seats have been decided, and a run-off election will be held to decide the remaining 65 seats.
• Loosers in elections : Ahmadinejad factions and reformists.
• Second round in elections needed in Tehran and in eleven regions – no date indication 
• Mohammad-Ali Abtahi strongly defends and justifies ex-President Khatami's vote in parliamentary elections.
• Hadad Adel (father in law of Khamenei’s son) could get back the role of Majlis speaker. 
• Controversial family law passes in Parliament.
• Ahmadinejad removed as Head of General Council of Iran National Oil Company; Oil Minister has replaced him.With signatures of 79 MPs, Ahmadinejad starts answering questions on 24 Esfand (March 14th)

Miscellaneous 

• Lawmakers reject obligation to register temporary marriages.
• 970 deaths due to drowning; 660 deaths caused by electric shock in this Persian year.In 1388 Persian year, 449 girls under 10 were married; this year (1390) 716 girls are under 10 years old when they married.