Week 15 - 2012

News of the Prisoners

A- Transfers

• Javid Alikhani transferred to Modarres hospital last week.
• Hossein Ronaghi Maleki was taken to hospital due to deteriorating health. Despite recommendation by physicians for Ronaghi to undergo surgery, he and family did not agree with the surgery. Ronaghi and family cited denial of medical furlough after surgery reason for not agreeing with Hossein to have another surgery. Ronaghi was taken back to Evin prison from the hospital despite his dire and deteriorating health.

B- Arrests/Incarcerations

• Ali Nejati, workers’ rights activist is back in prison.
• Baha'i Sarir Sadeghi was arrested at his home in Karaj on a warrant issued in Shiraz.
• Hossein Taheri, student activist of Azad University of Shiraz arrested.
• Two men 25 and 27 year old have been arrested in Rasht for running "indecent" websites.
• 4 Kurds arrested in the Kurdish city of Saghez by Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

C-Liberations 

• After 140 days in Sepah's Ward 2-A blogger Davoud Bahmanabadi was released on bail.
• Kouhyar Goudarzi released on bail.
• Civil activist Dr. Ellaheh Maaroozi has been released from Mashhad prison after one month in temporary detention.
• Meisam Mashayekh was released on bail from Noshahr prison last week after 1 month in detention.
• Behnam Sheikhi has released on bail from Ardebil Intel detention center.
• Davoud Shiri has released on bail from Tabriz Intel detention center.

D-Other News 

• Esmail Barzegari, political prisoner on hunger strike for 30 days, suffered stomach bleeding. 
• Imprisoned web designer Mohammad Soleimani-Nia on hunger strike in Evin.

News of injustice in Iran

• Singer Arya Aramnejad has been sentenced to one year prison on new charges.
• Education rights activist Bashir Ehsani has sentenced by Appeals Court to 2 years in prison + 3 years suspended.
• Mousavi 2009 presidential campaign activist Hossein Sarbandi was sentenced to one year in prison.
• After almost three years  in prison Reformist Mostafa Tajzadeh was arraigned on new charges for issuing statements from Evin criticizing the establishment.
• Kourosh Zaim, 72, given three-year suspended sentence.
• One prisoner was hanged in the town of Aran-Bigdel on April 5th.
• 5 unidentified people were hanged in Kerman and Bam.
• 3 executions in Shahr-e-Kord on Tuesday.
• 2 executions in Tabas on Tuesday.

University  - Culture

• Shirin Ebadi, first Muslim woman to win Nobel Peace Prize to receive honorary degree from Westfield State University.
• Iran 'blocks' official London 2012 Olympics website.
• Iran's security forces renew their crusade against satellite dishes.
• 15 female students at Shahrekurd University have been expelled from dormitories for improper Hejab.

Protests

• Laid-off workers protest at Labor Ministry.
• 2,000 Sugar cane workers protest in south western Iran.

Economy in Iran

• Iran nearly triples jet fuel prices from 400 tomans to 1143 tomans per litre.
• Iran: exports, not taking oil into account, are booming despite sanctions.
• 'Board members of Bank Melli banned from leaving country'.
• Iran's central bank posted an inflation rate of 21.5 in last Persian year that ended March 19.
• 30% of workers in all Iran production units have been laid off since March 20, 2012.
• Bread price to increase.
• Iran plans to give every job held by a woman to two women each working part-time!
• Iran slips to 144th place out of 183 in Doing Business ranking.
• Purchase of foreign made products is banned at Azad University.
• The upcoming floating price of gasoline in #Iran between 900 to 1500 tomans depending on quality and $ price.
• Rice was 3800 toman/kg 3 months ago. now it's 4500 toman/kg.
• Iran plans to sell all its petrochemical industry to investors.
• Millions of barrels of Iranian oil that were in Iranian tankers a few weeks ago now seem to have disappeared.
• Central Bank reports 35% increase in food prices compared to last year. Biggest price increases since last year, tomatoes (112.8%), cucumbers (102.2%), watermelons (68.6%), Tangerines (62.5%) .

Iran  abroad

• Arrested member of Iranian regimes revolutionary guard confess crack down in Syria.
• Iran hackers target Tunisia PM.
• Kofi Annan visits Tehran on Tuesday.
• Iran has cut oil exports to Spain and may halt sales to Germany and Italy.
• Iran bought over $7 million worth of 'bull semen' from the US in 2011.
• U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom blasts Iran for violation of religious rights.
• UAE reportedly recalls ambassador in Iran islands row.
• Iran exported 164 tons of expired food products to Iraqi Kurdistan during a period of one month.
• China to begin delivering supertankers to Iran in May.

Politics in Iran

• Head of Parliament A. Larijani asked Khamenei to stop the implementation of the second round of subsidies reform.
• For first time, Majlis Integration Committee rejected general outlines of national budget bill for persian year 1391.
• Resignation of Governor of the Central Bank Mahmoud Bahmani refused.
• Iran Intelligence Ministry announced: main members of a terrorist network affiliated to Israel captured in a nation-wide swoop.
• Iran to Host Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industries Meeting.

Miscellaneous 

• Iran navy rescues China crew from hijacked freighter.
• One in every five Tehrani suffers from Diabetes.