Iranian Regime Forces Arrest 40 In Sunni City Of Zahedan

Dozens of groups urged people in Iran and abroad to hold mourning ceremonies as well as street rallies and strikes on January 8 to also honor civilians killed by the Revolutionary Guards, and condemn the human rights violations by the regime. Following the downing of Flight PS 752, the Islamic Republic tried to deny the incident for a few days before it was forced to admit that an air defense unit had fired two missiles at the airliner over Tehran. 

In a statement, titled “This is no time for grief but for wrath,” at least a dozen rights groups said that three years ago following the incident, protests took place against the regime but now condemnations should be louder and heard everywhere. 

"It's been more than three months that a huge revolution has begun to liberate women and all people suffering under oppression and exploitation in the shackles of the criminal rule - a revolution whose motto is "women, life, freedom" and one of its main goals is the downfall of the Islamic Republic. In the three months since the beginning of our revolution, the Islamic Republic has committed more crimes against the revolutionaries, teenagers, young people and protesters,” read the statement.

The Association of Progressive Students, Alliance of Doctors, the Union of Doctors and Medical Staff, the Freedom-loving students of Noshirvani University of Babol, the National Committee of Kordestan Province Students, the Association of Revolutionary Students of Tehran, the Alliance of Esfahan University of Technology, and many other are among the signatories of the call for action.

"Now we all have come to believe that we can overthrow the Islamic Republic and bring its big and small officials to justice,” they added.

On Sunday, Hamed Esmaeilion, the Canada-based activist whose daughter and wife were killed in the incident and serves as the spokesman for the families of Iranian victims of Ukrainian flight PS752, also called for a symbolic action on January 7. Noting that there is a graveyard that bears the bodies of the Islamic regime’s victims, he said, “we will lay flowers on the graves of all the victims of the Islamic Republic in the world.” 

Last week, Britain, Canada, Sweden, and Ukraine formally launched a process to hold the Islamic Republic accountable for shooting down the Ukrainian airliner over Tehran, urging the Islamic Republic to agree to arbitration as Tehran has stonewalled over an independent investigation and proper compensation.

The airliner was shot down by two air-defense missiles fired by the IRGC as it took off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport. Hours earlier, the IRGC had fired more than a dozen missiles at Iraqi bases hosting US troops in retaliation for the killing of the IRGC Quds Force Commander Ghasem Soleimani who was targeted by a US drone strike just five days earlier. All 176 passengers and crew, including 63 Canadians and 10 from Sweden, as well as 82 Iranian citizens on the plane died in the disaster.

This year, the anniversary for the victims is taking place as the current wave of antigovernment protests ignited by the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini is raging on for over 100 days across the country. The protest rallies show no sign of abating as the regime has killed over 500 people and Iranians.

Like many other filmmakers and artists, American actor Mark Ruffalo published a post on Instagram Monday calling for her release.

He said up to now more than 600 artists have signed a letter calling for the release of the Iranian actress saying, “We want her to be freed.”

Seventeen days after her arrest, Alidousti has now been transferred to solitary confinement in ward 209 of Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, which is administered by the intelligence ministry.

In the online campaign launched under the title "Justice for Taraneh Alidousti", in addition to Mark Ruffalo, dozens of the world's most prominent figures, including Pedro Almodovar, Penelope Cruz, Juliette Binoche, Alfonso Cuaron and Ken Loach have joined the signatories.

Other signatories of the letter include Emma Thompson, Jason Momoa, Jeremy Irons, Kate Winslet, Marion Cotillard, Ian McKellen and Isabelle Huppert among others.

Amid the nationwide protests in Iran, Taraneh Alidousti published a photo of herself without the mandatory hijab while holding a placard reading “Women, Life, Freedom” which is the main slogan of protesters in Iran.

A few days later, in protest to the execution of Mohsen Shekari, a 23-year-old demonstrator, she wrote "Now wait for the consequences of this bloodshed."

The detention of Taraneh Alidousti has drawn widespread international reactions within the past two weeks, especially from the most prestigious film festivals in the world, such as Cannes, Berlinale, and Tribeca.

Security officers raided the house of Mehdi Ghadimi’s father in Karaj, west of Tehran, on Sunday and arrested the journalist who used to work for several dailies in Iran including Etemad and Shargh, both ‘reformist’ publications.

A member of his family told Etemad Online that around ten security agents raided the house to search his room and car and finally they confiscated his mobile phone and laptop.

According to the family member, the CCTV camera of their residence was also confiscated by the security forces.

He said after Mahdi's arrest, the officers transferred him to Tehran as they had been dispatched from Tehran to detain him.

He added that Mehdi has not been in contact with his family and there is no information about his whereabouts.

The Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists said in mid-December that at least 57 journalists have been arrested in Iran since September during popular protests against the Islamic Republic.

The international NGO also noted that only 30 of the 57 detained journalists have been reportedly released so far.

There are no exact figures on the number of people arrested during the protests, but some sources say nearly 20,000 people have been detained.

The funeral ceremony of Mehdi Zare Ashkezari was held in Ashkezar, Yazd province, while his name was first mentioned as one of the detainees during the protests.

Ali Janaban, one of Mehdi’s friends living in Bologna, Italy, confirmed the reports that he fell into a coma "a few hours after his temporary release" and "died after 20 days as a result of tortures in custody."

Mehdi was a university student in Bologna until two years ago, when he returned to Iran due to his family's need for his support.

The death of Mehdi had repercussions in the university where he studied and received coverage in some Italian media.

Ali Jenaban told Radio Farda that Mehdi participated in the protests like many other people and was arrested.

"He was severely tortured there, his nose and teeth were broken and then he fell into a coma for 20 days," he added.

Jenaban also noted that Mahdi's colleagues and Iranians living in Italy are going to hold rallies in Bologna in the coming days to protest.

Since the uprising against clerical rulers in Iran in mid-September, the identities of many detainees have not been revealed, and in some cases, and families have been reluctant to publicize the detention of their loved ones fearing the security forces.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency HRANA reported Monday that Mehdi (Shayan) Mohammadifard, who was arrested in the northern city of Nowshahr on October 2, has received two death sentences issued by a Revolutionary Court.

He has also been sentenced to seven years of penal service on charges of “insulting the Supreme Leader”, “acting against the county’s security”, as well as “propaganda against the institution”.

HRANA added that this political prisoner was deprived of the right to have a lawyer and in the absence of his chosen solicitor, the court accused him of "directing and planning" the protest rally on September 21 in Noshahr.

According to judiciary claims and the issued verdict, five people were killed during the protest.

An informed source close to Mohammadifard's family said, “all the confessions by the defendant during the interrogation were obtained under duress.”

“The only documents against him, which led to the death sentence, are the forced confessions obtained during the interrogation, as well as a film attributed to Mehdi, in which the face of the person is not clear at all,” added the source.

HRANA also wrote that in recent days, it has identified 58 citizens who are sentenced to death or are at risk of receiving the death sentence.