Iran: Activist woman arrested, her fate remains unknown

Shahnaz Akmali lost her son, Mostafa Karim-Beigi, during the 2009 uprising in Iran

In the early hours of Wednesday, January 25, 2017, anti-death penalty and human rights activist, Shahnaz Akmali was arrested by plainclothes agents and taken to an unknown location.
Ms. Akmali lost her son, Mostafa Karim-Beigi, during the 2009 uprising in Iran and has been active since then to demand the rights of victims of execution and political prisoners and their families.
A source close to Karim-Beigi family said, "Five or six plainclothes agents went to Ms. Akmali's residence and searched the house thoroughly. They confiscated and took away with them all of her belongings including her electronic communication devices."

Iran - Who is MEK?

WASHINGTON, Nov. 20, 2016 / PRNewswire-USNewswire

 Formed in 1965, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI / MEK), the largest and best-organized Iranian opposition movement, is the main component of the coalition, National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), which acts as the parliament-in-exile. The NCRI and MEK, have been committed to a secular, democratic, non-nuclear republic; gender equality; freedom of religion, thought, press, and association; support for peace in the Middle East; and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The president-elect of the NCRI is Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, who addressed a rally of 100,000 in Paris, well attended by dozens of prominent speakers from all over the world. 

A. The MEK role was critical in preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb

The MEK has been instrumental in exposing Iran's nuclear weapons program. Relying on a vast network inside Iran, MEK revelations of the weapons program significantly contributed to the world peace and the national security of the United States. If it were not for the MEK nuclear revelations, Tehran would have had the bomb by now. Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) told a House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing "We all owe a debt of gratitude to the MEK for bringing this information to the world, and causing the United States and the world to focus on the problem." 
B. MEK exposed the terrorist network of Iran
The MEK has played a key role in exposing the terrorist operations by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and its entity, the Qods Force. MEK's actionable intelligence on Qods Force operations in Iraq saved many lives, and thwarted many terrorist operations by the Iranian regime. MEK documented the details of the Qods force production and shipment of advanced EFP's (Explosively Formed Projectiles), the number one killer of U.S. forces in Iraq. MEK also exposed Iran's involvement in the bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia, which killed 19 American servicemen.
C. MEK enjoys extensive bi-partisan support in U.S. Congress
Over the past two decades, MEK has gained extensive support among a large bi-partisan group of members of congress. Congress strongly rejected MEK's FTO designation, which it viewed as a goodwill gesture to Tehran, as 99 members (52 D and 47 R) called for the group's delisting. Secretary Clinton revoked the designation in 2012, after being urged by the U.S. Court of Appeals- DC Circuit.
D. MEK has been leading the opposition against the regime at home and abroad
MEK has been in the forefront of opposition to the mullahs since early days of the 1979 revolution, when it soon become the number one target of the Iranian regime's repression. The rulers of Iran view the MEK as an existential threat due to its support at home, and undermining the regime's Islamic extremist ideology among a vast majority of the Iranian population, especially the youth. MEK's modern, tolerant and democratic view on Islam has been the antithesis to the Islamic fundamentalists and the velayat-e faqih system. The MEK has been the main victim of repression in Iran. In summer 1988, the Iranian regime, by direct order of Supreme Leader Khomeini, massacred 30,000 political prisoners, most members of MEK. Over 100,000 of its members have been murdered since 1981, and many of its supporters are currently jailed in notorious prisons across the country. Most of those arrested and sentenced to death after the summer 2009 uprising in Iran, belonged to the MEK.
CONTACT: Ali Safavi, 202-747-7847, www.ncrius.org
To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/who-is-the-mek-300366385.html
SOURCE National Council of Resistance of Iran-U.S. Representative Office

Yesterday 14 November was tweet stome for 8 political prisoners in two diffrent prisons of Iran in Urmia and Tehran. Among them are tow artist, Hossein Rajabian filmmaker and Mehdi Rajabian musician. The brothers are currently serving 3-years prison terms. In Iran under mullah's rule art is considered a crime and artist is also criminal. A third artist Keywan Karimi has also been sentenced to six years’ in prison for “insulting Islamic sanctities”, also related to his artistic work and is at imminent risk of imprisonment.
On 8 November 2016, Amnesty International called on artists and members of the public around the world to join a #FreeArtists campaign to demand that Iran immediately and unconditionally release jailed artists, including a musician and a filmmaker who are on hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin Prison. To day we have also tweet storm to support the artists imprisoned. Their imprisonment is yet another nail in the coffin for freedom of expression in Iran. The human right to liberty is sadly so undervalued by the Iranian authorities that they are prepared to condemn individuals to years in jail just to silence artistic voices that they deem as ‘anti-Islamic’ and ‘anti-revolutionary’.
“Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee is the latest young writer and activist to be caught up in Iran’s relentless crackdown on artistic expression. Her imprisonment for peacefully voicing her opposition to stoning is a terrible injustice and an outrageous assault on freedom of expression. It is also a shocking and deeply disturbing display of support for the cruel and inhuman punishment of stoning,” said Magdalena Mughrabi, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. NCRI- According to reports from Iranian prisons, the political prisoners Rasoul Razavi, Morteza Morad Pour
and Hossein Ali Mohammadi were still on
hunger strike on 12 November.  

Iran - Maryam Rajavi: "Rise and stand up to the policy of executed by the ruling religious dictatorship"

Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the Iranian Resistance

Messages of Maryam Rajavi on the World Day Against Death Penalty: I hail the brave men and women who were executed by Iran's ruling religious dictatorship in the battle for freedom. More than any other party, the World Day Against the Death Penalty targets the Iranian regime that has so far executed 120,000 political prisoners who were serving their prison sentences, but were hanged just for their political beliefs. Mrs Rajavi said: According to Khomeini's fatwa, any prisoner who continued to adhere to the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), had to be executed.

The number of executions including political executions in Iran over the past one year exceed the number of executions carried out in most of the years of Khamenei's rule. The mass executions of 25 Sunni Kurds on August 2, 2016, and the executions of three Arab political prisoner on August 17, 2016, are just to name a few examples. According to the report by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Ahmad Shahid, nearly 1,000 people were executed last year in Iran. Then, in March 2015, Rouhani's Interior Minister Rahmani Fazli admitted, "Undoubtedly, part of the dirty money of drug trafficking gets funneled into the country's politics, elections and transfer of power." The death penalty faces growing opposition and general detestation in Iran, as well. The movement to obtain justice for victims of the massacre in 1988 has expanded in recent months cornering the mullahs with regards to continuing the executions.

Maryam Rajavi: I call on the international community to provide the arrangements for the prosecution of the clerical regime's leaders, particularly its leader Khamenei, in the international courts for the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners. We call on western governments to make their relations with the Iranian regime contingent on a moratorium on executions. The Iranian people and Resistance will bring justice to the clerical regime for violating their human rights. This Resistance has rise up to create a society that bears no trace of the death penalty, torture, and inhuman verdicts issued under the mullah's regime. 

NCRI - The Trudeau Government is facing strong Calls to Take a Tough stand Against Iran Regime

Irnian-Canadians held rally to trial the perpetrators of 1988 massacre in Iran.

Iranians Resistance in Canada are demanding to inquiry into the mass executions of political prisoners at the end of the Iran-Iraq War in 1988 and also Canadian Friends for a Democratic Iran are pursuing.
OTTAWA- Iranian residents in Canada is calling on the Canadian's government to add a tough new element to its annual United Nations resolution on Iran's dubious human rights record - an International call for a war crimes investigation. The group, which calls itself Canadian Friends for a Democratic Iran, will make the request later today at a press conference on Parliament Hill. Canada has taken the lead each year since 2003 in sponsoring a resolution at the UN condemning Iran's human rights record. Now, Golestaneh's group wants the government to up the ante by asking the UN to launch an investigation into the events as part of that annual resolution. 

Religious minorities are victims of extremism in Iran

NCRI - Iran's fundamentalist regime earlier this week closed down at least 16 shops owned or operated by Baha'is in Qaemshahr, northern Iran, according to loca; reports. The measure was taken based on a directive passed over to the regime's suppressive State Security Forces in Qaemshahr. Seals were placed on the shops on Wednesday, April 20, wich coincided with a Baha'i religious festival. Earlier, the mullahs' henchmen authorities destroyed on the Baha'i cemetery,

and Three United Nations experts on human rights in Iran, freedom of religion and minority issues have today renewed an calls to stop the destruction of a Baha'i cemetry in Shiraz by Revolutionary Guards.

Concurrent Mogherini's trip in Iran, 10 execution were carried

NCRI -The antihuman clerical regime from 14 to 16 April coincided with the EU High Representative to Iran 10 prisoners hanged. Seven of prisoners, including two women, were hanging Mar 26 collectively in the central prison of Birjand. The clerical regime's leaders fearful of a revolt by the army of the unemployed and poverty, so are ratcheting up suppression ond slaughter on a daily basis to rein in social protest. The relationship of European countries with the religious fascism ruling Iran and visits by their officials to Tehran amid their continued shameful silence and inaction regarding the horrendous and systematic violation of human rights in Iran emboldens this regime to continue with its torture, executions, slaughters, suppression of women and ethnic and religious minorities, and its defiance of international law and conventions. Improvement of economic and political relations with this medieval regime ought to be preconditioned to improvement of human rights and in particular a halt to executions.

Amnesty International: Iranian authorities utter disregard for the right to life

Rashid Kouhi, were  executed by Iran's fundamentalist regime

NCRI - Despite Amnesty International warnings for the sentence to be halted, Iran's fundamentalist  regime executed student Rashid Kouhi  earlier in the day on Saturday morning in Lakan prison of Rasht. Student Rashid was arrested in September 2011 ROODBAR checkpoint in Gilan Province , by Khamenei's henchmen and on false charges of drug possession was sentenced to death in a show trial, he was denied access to a lawyer. Amnesty International has strongly objected to the condemnation of  him and demanded to stop his sentence. On Friday Amnesty International said Mr. Kouhi's scheduled execution demonstrated the Iranian authorities utter disregard for the right to life and their determination to continue with a staggering execution spree that saw nearly 1000 people put to death last year. The human rights group said on its website: "At least 977 people were executed in Iran in 2015."

Iranian Resistance in call for Italian PM to cancel trip to Iran

Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi

NCRI - Iranian Resistance has Demanded to cancel the visit of Italy's Prime Ministers  to Iran, and called on Italy's PM to cancel it. "Iran has an economy worth $400 billion and European countries are keen to re-establish trade ties," the paper wrote. The NCRI said under Hassan Rouhani rule 2,300 people have been executed, and UN special rapporteur has confirmed these figure. "According to a UN special rapporteur, the highest figure over the past 25 years." Shahin Ghobadi of the NCRI

told The National: "The Iranian regime is very egregious and only feeds Tehran's propaganda. It has no interest in improving Iran's conduct at home or abroad." Just a report by Amnesty International put Iran far ahead of any other country in terms of executions in 2015." Mr. Gobadi said the NCRI was hopeful that Mr. Renzi's visit could still be called off, and pointed out that the Iranian regime's president Hassan Rouhani had unexpectedly cancelled a state visit to Austria last week to meet president Heinz Fischer and other leaders. Mr. Gobadi said the NCRI was hopeful that Mr. Renzi’s visit could still be called off, and pointed out that the Iranian regime's president Hassan Rouhani had unexpectedly cancelled a state visit to Austria last week to meet president Heinz Fischer and other leaders. “This notion of radicals versus moderates is fanciful, foolhardy and delusional. When it comes to the regime’s conduct, particularly on human rights, terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, nuclear proliferation and things of this nature, they are all in the same boat." 

“Rouhani is cut from the same cloth as the rest of the ayatollahs are.”

Mullahs' regime abuses Italian Prime Minister's visit to Iran, and Iranian Resistance calls for cancellation of the visit

NCRI - The Iranian Resistance calls for cancellation of the Italian Prime Minister's visit next week to Iran. The Iranian Resistance is worried that the terrorist, religious dictatorship ruling Iran would take abuses of this visit to continue human rights violations, and export terrorism and fundamentalism, so Iranian Resistance call for the cancellation of the tour. Such trips mullahs' regime against the Iranian people and the higher interests of peace and tranquility in the region is used. 

According to the United Nation Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran: more than 2,300 people were executed, executions in 2015 was the highest number in 25 years that mean Under presidency of Hassan Rouhani. 

Visiting Tehran to shake hands with leaders of the Iranian regime without renouncing their crimes, while turning a blind eye to these undeniable facts, will certainly assist the detested theocratic regime ruling Iran and prolong the agony and suffering of the people of Iran and the region. The Iranian Resistance calls on Italian political parties, the Parliament, and human rights advocates to undertake urgent measures to encourage Prime Minister Renzi to condemn violations of human rights and export of terrorism by the Iranian regime and cancel his visit to Iran.

Iran - Richard Ashworth: Hassan Rouhani is not a moderate' as he claims to be

NCRI - Mr. Richard Ashworth pointed to over 1000 executions carried out in Iran in 2015 under Rouhani's watch, Mr. Ashworth who is a strong supporters of freedom and democracy in Iran

Mr. Richard Ashworth is European Parliament who hosted Mrs. Maryam Rajavi President-elect of the Iranian Resistance last week. He said: "We were very happy to visite Mrs. Maryam Rajavi in the European Parliament. Mrs.Rajavi received great support from many members of the parliament, who came from all of the different political groups. And we were all there to demonstrate our support for her vision for a free and democratic Iran, an Iran that is free from nuclear ambitions, an Iran which is free from the death penalty and an Iran that can once again be a valued partner in a peaceful world; not a threat. Members of the European Parliament have spoken out in support of human rights and democracy in Ira through support for the democratic opposition led by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi.

Iranian in Austria condemn human rights abuse under Rouhani

Iranian who live in Austria hold a rally for few days protested to Rouhani's visit of Vienna, against human rights abuses under him. They were chants of "Rouhani is a terrorist," "No to Rouhani," and "Democracy, Freedom with Maryam Rajavi". All Iranians demand change regime in Iran. They don't want mullahs regime. The mullahs regime in Iran is terrorist and fascist and Rouhani is a criminal and enemy of Iranian. The rally was organized by the Human Rights Center for Victims of Fundamentalism which supports the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI or MEK), the principal Iranian opposition group and the pivotal force of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI).

Demonstrators also expressed their support for the members of the PMOI in Camp Liberty, Iraq. Camp Liberty was targeted by the Iranian regime on October 29, 2015 when a barrage of rockets killed 24 residents and destroyed a large portion of the camp. The demonstrators urged the UN and the US to provide protection to Camp Liberty residents.

"No to Rouhani" Rally in French Press

Editorial in French daily: Listen to the Iranian people

According to the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) even minor are executed such as thousands of people who have suffered this atrocity in Iran since 1989. The judiciary continues to sentence people to inhuman treatment .... including amputations, torture, and trials without access to lawyers which are common. Journalists, bloggers, and opponents are imprisoned. Putting human rights under wraps to obtain contracts is tantamount to betraying our democratic duty.
Human rights in Iran must not be overlooked: French MEP Jose Bove. 

French MEP José Bové

Jose Bove, a prominent French Member of the European parliament, told thousands of supporters of the Iranian opposition at the 'No to Rouhani' rally in Paris on Thursday that the appalling human rights situation in Iran must not be overlooked. "Today’s meeting between Rouhani and the French president is intolerable for a simple reason: humans rights must come before the laws of market forces and profit."
France must support freedom in Iran: Jean-Francois Legaret Jean-Francois Legaret, mayor of the 1st ditrict of Paris, addressed a demonstration by thousands of Iranians and human rights activists against the presence of the Iranian regime's president, Hassan Rouhani, in the French capital.

NCRI - Solidarity against Extremism under Banner of Islam

Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of Iranian Resistance held a solidarity of French mayors against Extremism at headquarters of Iranian Resistance in Auvers-Sur-Oise on January 24, 2016. Maryam Rajavi started in memory of all those who lost their lives as a result of extremist crimes in 2015, including the political prisoners executed in Iran, Camp Liberty martyrs, and victims of terrorist attack in France. The statements signed by 14,000 mayors and elect representatives of France in support of the Iranian Resistance, are very precious documents. They express the great values of France.

Also your political stances over the years have been admirable. Time and again, you warned against a number of threats: the mullahs' nuclear weapons; Islamic fundamentalism; violations of human rights in Iran and the mullahs' domination of the region. Last year  the eyes of the world opened to a major challenge, the challenge of mass killings of innocent people in the name of God. But it is reversing the message of Islam and its not true. After nuclear agreement, the Iranian regime didn't move towards moderation but they moved in the other direction. The Iranian economy has spent  on the war agians people in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. They intervene officially in region countries, including attack on Saudi Arabia embassy on January 2, 2016 in Tehran. The Iranian regime is the main cause of instability, war and terrorism in the region, and the tide of refugees. The people of Iran demand that the international community and France in particular stand by the Iranian people's Resistance in their struggle against the epicenter of extremism, namely the Iranian regime, to achieve freedom and human rights.

Execution included also children in Iran regime

Ahmed-Shaheed-ICHRI

NCRI - Execution of child offenders in Iran under Hassan Rouhani presidency is Increasing, compare to any time during the past five years. Dr. Ahmad Shaheed, the United Nation Special Repportuer on the situation of Human Rights in Iran, published on his website on Wednesday: "Iran is one of a handful of countries that still executes child offenders, or boys and girls under 18 years of age at the time they commit a crime." He said: "by law of the mullahs' judiciary, sentenced girls as young as nine lunar years and boys as youngs as 15 lunar years to death by hanging, in plain violation one of the most fundamental and sacrosanct rights recognized under international law."  
Hassan Rouhani described these executions as "God's commandments" and "laws of the parliament that belongs to the people." On the last November the Mullahs regime in Iran was condemned for 62nd times by the UN General Assembly.

No to Rouhani – Chanting slogan Supporters of the Iranian Resistance in rally in Paris

 NCRI - The video clip of Supporters of the Iranian Resistance, protest against human rights violations in Iran under the presidency of mullah Hassan Rouhani in Paris on January 9, 2016 

Past day, the Iranian supporters of the main Iranian opposition group (PMOI or MEK) held a protest to Rouhani's planned trip to Paris on 28 January. Because in the term of his presidency have significantly incressed executions in Iran.
On December 17, 2015, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution strongly condemning the brutal and systematic violation of human rights in Iran, in particular the mass and arbitrary executions, increasing violence and discrimination against women and ethnic and religious minorities.

Iran - Rouhani's two-years human rights record

Hassan Rohani

NCRI - Who is Hassan Rouhani and know more about him.
What has been action during his tenure? Hassan Rohani on human rights is no different of other mullahs.
His ideas also is reactionary and medieval ideas, because he is also mullah.Hassan Rohani not only opposed execution, but described these are as "God's commandements" and "laws of the parliament that begongs to the people". There have been over 2,000 executions in Iran in the two years that Rouhani has been in office, more than in any similar period in the past 25 years. Human rights situation in Iran is very dreadful. 
The victims include political dissidients like Gholamreza Khosravi, an activist of Iran's principal opposition, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMIO or MEK) who was hanged solely for providing financial assistance to a satellite television station supporting the opposition.

No to Rouhani: Slogan of Iranian Opposition in Paris

NCRI - Iranian opposition in Paris held a protest in support of human rights in Iran. They condemned the soaring rate of executions in Iran during Hassan Rouhani's Presidency. 
The Iranian held banners that showing the appalling human rights violance by the mullahs' regime, including the more than 2000 executions carried out under Rouhani's watch. The supporters of the Iranian Resistance chanted slogans in support of democratic change in Iran. They urged the French government not to welcome Rouhani in Paris later this month and  reiterated that an improvement of relations with the Iranian regime should be based on a halt to executions and human rights violations in Iran.

Iran - The fundamentalist regime in Iran is opposed to all religions

Assyrian's Chaldean Catholic Church

NCRI – Authorities in Tehran are planning to transform illegally-
confiscate church grounds into an ‘Islamic prayer center.’
The Iranian fundamentalism regime plans to turn Tehran church grounds into the Islamic prayer hall. The land belonged to the Iranian Assyrian community Chaldean Catholic Church in Tehran. It was illegally confistated two years ago under the pretext of constructing an Islamic prayer center. In the earlier this year, the Tehran municipality had shut down the Pounak  Sunni's mosque, backed by state suppressive forcers, raided and destroyed the Sunni 'Pounak' prayer hall. 
At the time, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the Iranian Resistance, described the destruction of the Sunni prayer hall in the Pounak district of Tehran as an anti-Islamic, sectarian and criminal act, and she called on all defenders of human rights and freedom of religion and belief and the international community, especially Muslim countries, Europe and the US, to protest against it. 
 

 

Iran - dire condition of 4 prisoners on hunger strike

Political Prisoners, Farid Azmodeh, Alireza Farahani, Behzad Tarahomi,Iraj Hatami, in Karaj Prison

NCRI - On the 6th day of the hunger strike of the political prisoners, Farid Azmodeh, Alireza Farahani, Behzad Tarahomi and Iraj Hatami, in Gohardasht (Rajai-Shahr) Prison in Karaj, north-west of Tehran, their conditions are deteriorating. They are on hunger strike to protest a miscalculation of their detention period and violation of the principle of separation of crimes. Iran's senior missile experts is among the hunger strikers who refused to cooperate with Iranian regime for facilitate production of weapons of mass destruction. They explained their objection in a short letter: We Disappointed from enjoying our legal rights and of  human rights organizations, went on hunger strike because its the last resort. In the hope that one day we get their rights.