Seven prisoners were executed in Evin prison, forty executions on the way in Ardebil province..

Names of those executed in Evin prison on sunday morning (July 3, 2011) :
1-Hamid Nader, 44
2-Abolfazl Azimi Tabar, 50
3-Mehdi Bashiri,
4-Javad Abdullahvand, 54
5-Asghar,...
6-An Afghani citizen
7-MAssoud Alimoradi, 30

Forty execution orders have been given in Ardebil province as well.

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Iran Human Rights Blog is back.

After a fairly long interval, the Iran Human Rights Blog blog  is now back. Please recommend this blog to your friends and share the content. Please contribute by sending news, pictures and clips about human rights abuse in Iran.

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Updates from today's protests in Tehran (February 11)

Police beating a protester in Tehran

Tehran:

-A man (left picture) was shot in the head by the Iranian police.

-Clip: CNN: scenes from Iran show how difficult and dangerous it is to show any opposition to this government. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqexh2Wa8O4

-Clip: People chant: Torture, murder, death to this government  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1d836D4zsz0
-Fierce clashes between the police and protesters are still going on in Ariashahr and Ferdows Blwd.

-Clip: CNN's report on Tehran. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1d836D4zsz0

-Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ei9HsTVO34E

Anti-riot police attacking people with tear-gas!! People chant: " Dont be afraid we are all togheter"

-Thousands of protesters have surrounded the Radio/TV station in Jame-Jam St.

-clashes in Poonak.

-Zahra Rahnavard, Mousavi's wife was beaten in the head and back.

-Clip: Police chasing protesters http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1CaPVVZYVo

-L.A. Times: Protesters clash with police as Iran marks Islamic revolution

-Clip:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaV5yTzAcc0, people capture a BAsij motorbike and set it on fire

- Leila Zarei, 27, was shot and killed

-Clip: Chanting death to the dictator in Metro (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XG15z_38N8)

-Opposition looks to hijack Islamic revolution anniversary
-Enghelab St., The police is beating women and searching their handbags.

-The police and plain clothes are beating people in Aria Shahr. All roads to Aria Shahr have been blocked.

-Protests in Amirabad

-4-5 thousand chanting anti-government slogans in ferdowsi Sq.

-Clashes in Mosadeq sq. At least 2-3 thousand are chanting.

-Khatami's vehicle was attacked and damaged.

-The crowd in Sadeghiye Sq. is getting larger by the minute. People are chanting: "Death to the dictator", "Iranians, support, support"

-Tehran in  turmoil

-clashes in Enghelab square. Police takes those arresred to "Bahman Movie Theatre".

-azadi square: people chanting:"free political prisoners", and " death to the dictator"

-6 women and a man were arrested in Enghelab sq. , corner of Mosadeq st.

-Government thugs have attacked people with butcher knives. several killed ( not verified)

-11:20 :Clashes in Vali-Asr St. A police motorbike was set on fire in Keshavarz Blvd.

-Pole Chubi: People are destroying the loud speakers mounted by the government. The street is filled with the anti-riot vehicles imported from China  (Shame on China!).

-presstv, irna, irib and farsnews have all been brought down

-Fierce clashes between people and the government forces in Sadeghiye and Satar Khan. Tear gas, helicopters. People have destroyed the loudspeakers mounted by the government.

-clashes between the police and people coming from Ekbatan ( Ferdows Blvd. and Satari St.) towards Aria shahr

-10:54 -Mehdi Karubi was attacked in Sadeghiye square, resulting in a head injury. The windows of his car were broken by batons.

-Ashrafi Esfahani Street: Clashes, tear gas and gunshots ...
-Clashes in Enghelab & Sadeghieh Sqs. Tear gas fired in Eneghelab square.
-Aria   Shahr, many women have removed their scarves.
-A big crowd is going towards Apadana, where Sohrab Arabi's house is.

-A Basij bus was set on fire in Aria Shahr

Gonbad Kavus

Molotov coctails were thrown.

Isfahan

-11:30: Police is hooting at people at Azar Bridge.

-All the roads to Imam Sq. are closed.

Tabriz

-Protests in Ark Sq.

Behbahan

-People have started to protest

Shiraz

-20 have been arrested in anti-government protests.

Support the call from Iranian bloggers to stop executions in Iran

 Support the call by the Iranian bloggers to stop the executions in Iran. They are asking for Iran to halt all execution orders immediately. In particular, the execution of five men in relation to the election protests, a Kurdish woman and a political prisoner. All seven are in immiment danger of execution.

Whoever you are, wherever you are, even if you are not a blogger, go to this page and enter your name to be included in the comments to support this act.

Five men convicted in relation to the recent uprisings and a Kurdish woman in imminent danger of execution. Twenty more in the waiting list!

The Iranian government has no consideration for the international law. Ehsan Fattahian's execution order was full of flaws, but Ehsan was murdered regardless.

Now Zeynab Jalalian, another 28-year old Kurdish activist is in imminent danger of execution. Her sentence has been confirmed. She wrote in a letter from the prison that she was ill as a result of all the brutal tortures she has gone through and that her court was held without her lawyer and she was sentenced to death in a few minutes.

Zeynab is convicted because of her support for the Turkish Kurdish group P.K.K. She also had given refuge to a Pejak member. But she has never used weapons and has never been armed. Death penalty seem to be very harsh.

Five men who were present in mass trials after the uprisings, have been sentenced to death. This is a ridiculus sentence as a few of these men were arrested before the June elections. They took part in the mock trials with the promise that if they would confess to what the government wants, they would be free.

These five men are: Mohammad Reza Ali Zamani, Hamed Ruhi Nejad, Arash Rahmani poor, Reza khademi and Naser Abdolhosseini.

Please call your representatives and inform your friends and family, to call amnesty international and the United Nations and ask for their intervention to stop these executions and the massacre f the other political prisoners.

In memory of Ehsan Fattahian.

Ehsan was executed on the morning of November 11, 2009 in Sanandaj prison. His was denied a last visit with his parents and his lawyer. He was on dry hunger strike when executed. A witness said Ehsan himself kicked the stool from under his legs.

His body was not given to his parents for burial. They were shown a grave in the far corner of Kermanshah cemetery with no name on it. This is how the Iranian regime tries to torture not only the prisoners, but their families and friends.

Shame on the United Nations for letting Iran get away with this systematic abuse of human rights and shame on the Western countries who sweep everything under the carpet for money. 
A video about Ehsan Fattahian:

Kurdish activist, Ehsan Fattahian, to be executed on Wednesday, November 11th.

Ehsan Fattahian is a 27-year old Kurdish activist and a member of the Kurdish opposition group Komala. Ehsan was arrested when he was visiting with his family in Kamiyaran. He was initially sentenced to 10-years in prison, but the order was changed later to execution.

Ehsan's only crime is being Kurdish and being a member of an opposition group. There is no other charge against him. On Sunday he was informed that his execution will be in order for Wednesday in Sanandaj Prison. Ehsan has been on dry hunger strike since Sunday.

Human rights activists inside and outside Iran have been trying to stop the execution. Several other Kurdish activists have announced that they will too go on a hunger strike if the order is not stopped. Human rights activists have called people to gather in front of Sanandaj prion at 2:30 am on Wednesday to stop this unjust order.

The following is  from Ehsan's letter from Sanandaj prison:

Let me add that, shortly before my sentence was changed to the death sentence, I was taken from Sanandaj prison to the Intelligence Ministry’s detention center, where I was asked to make a false confession on camera, show remorse for the actions I had not committed and reject my beliefs. I did not give in to their illegitimate demands, so I was told that my prison sentence would be changed to the death sentence. They were fast to keep their promise and prove to me how courts always concede to the demands of intelligence and non-judicial authorities. How can one criticize the courts then?

All judges take an oath to remain impartial at all times and in all cases, to rule according to the law and nothing but the law. How many of the judges of this country can say that they have not broken their oath and have remained fair and impartial? In my opinion the number is countable with the fingers on my hand. When the entire justice system in Iran orders arrests, trials, imprisonments and death sentences with the simple hand gesture of an uneducated interrogator, what is to be expected from a few minor judges in a province that has always been discriminated against? Yes, in my view, it is the foundation of the house which is in ruins.

Last time I met in prison with the prosecutor who had issued the initial indictment, he admitted that the ruling was illegal. Yet, for the second time, it has been ruled that my execution should be carried out. It goes without saying that the insistence to carry out the execution at any cost is a result of pressures exercised by political and intelligence groups outside the Judiciary. People who are part of these groups look at the question of life and death of a prisoner only based on their own political and financial interests. They cannot see anything but their own illegitimate objectives, even when it is the question of a person’s right to life - the most basic of all human rights. How pointless is it to expect them to respect international treaties when they don’t even respect their own laws?

Last word: if the rulers and oppressors think that, with my death, the Kurdish question will go away, they are wrong. My death and the deaths of thousands of others like me will not cure the pain; they will only add to the flames of this fire. There is no doubt that every death is the beginning of a new life.

Ehsan Fattahian,

Sanandaj Central Prison

Amnesty International's call for urgent action:

http://www.vokradio.com/content/view/978/23/

Please help however you can to stop Ehsan's execution and ask them to pressure the Iranian government to stop Ehsan's execution.

1) Call/ write to  Amnesty International, UNHCR and the Red Cross

2)Call ypur friends, your local media and your legislatures, explain the situation  and ask them to help Ehsan.

3) Sign the following petition:

http://gopetition.com/online/31973.html

The Iranian uprising is very much alive!

Today, the Iranians poured in the streets of Iran (Tehran, Tabriz, Isfahan and many more cities) and protested against the oppressive government. The witnesses report that many were beaten and injured and many were arrested. The police and the plain-clothes ones were even more forceful and brutal, but that did not deter the people.

Yahoo messenger and mobile services were cut from the previous night, so that people could not contact each other. The police and Basijis ( plain-clothes) had spies among people and reported against them.

Mousavi was under house arrest and did not attend the protests. Karubi, however, atteneded the protests and was attacked close to the 7-Tir square. According to his son, one of the police officers threw a tear gas to Karubi's face that was fended off by one of his bodyguards.

The police was very brutal, especially targeting women:





One of the witnesses wrote that the police and Basijis were there to KILL. They hit people with batons and iron rods. Still, people stood up and chanted against the government.

Meanwhile, and not surprisingly President Obama sent a message, not to the Iranian people, but to the Iranian government, asking them to FORGET THE PAST and START RELATIONS! You can read the message here (scroll down for English):

http://www1.voanews.com/persian/news/iran/obama-speech-2009-11-04-69075832.html

NYTime on today's protests: Iran Opposition Protesters Return to Streets

Second Letter from Hamed Rouhinejad, Political Prisoner Sentenced to Death because of participation in demonstrations

Friday, October 30th, 2009




Hamed Rouhinejad is a young prisoner who has multiple sclerosis. He was arrested on bogus charges by agents from the Intelligence Ministry, 40 days before the election.

Following the post-election mass protests, partly because of false promises and partly under threat, Rouhinejad ended up playing a role in the show trials, a role that resulted in a death sentence for him.

The following is the second letter Rouhinejad has written from Evin, where he is detained. In this letter which is addressed to one of his cellmates, he explains his painful ordeal. HRA has previously published Rouhinejad’s first letter.

To my cellmate, on my birthday (Aban 8th, October 30th) which this year coincided with Imam Reza’s birthday,

It was the 40th day of my detention within the horrifying walls of the solitary cell when the guard came looking for me. I was listening to his footsteps approaching. My heart was beating fast. The thought of having to face the threats and promises of my interrogator, who would make me rehearse the scenario, gave me shivers and fear. Then the sound of footsteps stopped, and the door opened. I was told by the guard to put on my blindfold and follow him.

Hurriedly, I put on the blindfold and, with thousands of thoughts in mind, started to follow the guard. Even though my eyes were covered I could feel that he was taking me on a new route. Suddenly he ordered me to stop and face the wall. After a few minutes, as I was standing still and quietly facing the wall, I heard the voice of the interrogator who called me in. I had no idea what to expect. He took a telephone card out of his pocket and asked for my family’s phone number. He then dialed the number and gave the phone to me. I heard my sister’s voice and I could only say hello before I burst out crying. I let the phone go and sat on the floor with my hands on my head. I stood back up when the interrogator yelled that the phone was about to get disconnected. I spoke to my sister as I was sobbing. It was not a conversation; we were both crying. Then I talked to my mother. The tone of her voice told me the whole story. I wish those who inflict so much pain on people knew something about humanity. My mother’s tearful voice and her sobbing will whisper in my ears for the rest of my life.

I was told to end the call fast. Unwillingly and because I was told to, I disconnected the phone and went back to the dungeon. A few minutes after arrival to my solitary cell, the guard came back and told me to pack my belongings because he was taking me to another cell. I did not know what was going to happen to me or where he was taking me to. I packed my belongings and put on my blindfold and started to follow him again. He stopped in front of a cell, opened the cell door and ordered me to step inside. I could feel the presence of one human being but later I found out there were actually two other people inside the cell. I could not believe it. Never in my life had I been so happy to see another human being. It was an endless favor from God, who had given me a cellmate and a friend; someone to whom I could talk without any reservation about all the pain that, until that moment, I had kept only to myself.

I am talking to you who welcomed me warmly; you who gave me the gift of happiness with your welcoming face. You who were the only person to whom I could tell all the unsaid things and you listened to me. I told you how the agents raided our house in the middle of the night and arrested me for no reason.

The only charge on my file was that I had left the country illegally, for which I had good reasons. I told you how I returned to Iran with the approval of the Intelligence Ministry. Do you remember the time that, with tears in my eyes, I explained to you how I had to write down unwillingly, disgusted and under threat and psychological pressure what the interrogators wanted? Not because I was promised that by doing so I could go back to my family and continue my studies, but only because I did not want my MS attacks to start. I did not want to lose sight in my eyes or become paralyzed, even though it happened anyway, and today I have to almost stick my face to the paper in order to see the letter I am writing to you.

As I am writing I have to use all the force that is left in me to stop the pen from slipping out of my numb fingers. These days I have only one leg to stand on, and even when I hit hard objects I can’t feel the pain. You used to say mental and physical health is a gift God has given to us and therefore should be cherished and cared for. I used to answer that that was the reason I confessed to doing things that even my soul was not aware of. I described to you how horrified I was each time I thought my family members would be brought in to Ward 209, and, in order to save me, would confess to things they were not aware of, the same way I did.

I have said everything to you. You know that none of the charges against me are true. Today those charges have formed a noose around my neck. I have to tell you that even the little treatment I used to get has stopped. My only wish now is to get back my sight and feeling in my body when and if my sentence is overturned. I pray to God to give me enough inner peace and patience until the day I can return to my family and society. I am grateful to God for letting me walk on a path with serving people as my goal. I am a captive today because I wanted to serve the people, a crime for which I will have to walk to the gallows. Yet, in my belief, there is no honor higher than being sacrificed for my compatriots.

Hamed Rouhinejad.

Evin Prison
(taken from the facebook page of http://freedommessenger.blogspot.com)

Behnoud Shojaie, 21, was executed this morning.

People had gathered in front of the Evin prison since 2 am. Among the 100 or so, mothers of the martyrs of the recent uprising ( Sohrab Aarabi's mother), a representative from UNICEF , artists and human rights activists could be seen.

The victim's family came and everyone gathered around them. Asked them to forgive Behnoud. They went inside. Behnoud came and fell on their feet, begged for forgiveness. Asked them not to kill him. The victim's mother said she wanted to see the noose on his neck. So they did.

They took Behnoud to a room where everything was prepared to kill him. He was guided to stand on top of a stool. They put the noose on his neck and while everyone was hoping for the family's forgiveness, the parents went forward and pulled the stool from under Behnoud's feet.

And he died! at the age of 21. He had spent 4 years in jail already.

He had killed their son by accident, but the laws of the Islamic Republic made him the victim of a legal homicide. The barbaric laws of Iran need to be changed. NOW!

sources:

http://www.hra-news.org/news/6757.aspx

http://mohegh.blogfa.com/

Next week Safar Angooti might have the same fate. Please call anyone you can and ask them to stop executions in Iran, immediately.