A Former Director of IRIB Executed on Charges of Corruption on Earth

Reports from Iran indicate that Karim Zargar, a former director of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) and filmmaker, was executed on February 10 in Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj on charges of corruption on earth. The news website Zeytoon introduces Karim Zargar, born in 1953 in Ahvaz, as holding a PhD in maritime law from the University of Strasbourg in France, and notes that he also served as the director of the IRIB's international broadcasting. Zargar is mentioned as the head of the 'Institute for Metaphysical Studies and Research of the Way of Knowledge,' and according to reports, he was sentenced to death for promoting the emerging spiritual movement of Ekankar, among other charges including corruption on earth. Ekankar is a spiritual movement founded in the 1960s in the United States, aiming to receive 'divine light and sound' through spiritual practices. Meanwhile, Mahmoud Behzadi Rad, a lawyer in the case, previously stated to Radio Farda that Zargar's case was 'not ideological' and that he, along with another individual named Marjan Davari, was accused of corruption on earth due to sexual assault against women and children and producing photographs and videos of the assault scenes. According to the human rights news agency HRANA, Zargar was arrested in October 2015 following the closure and arrest of the institute's officials and was sent to Ward 209 of Evin Prison. After trials in October and December 2016 presided over by Judge Salavati, both defendants were ultimately sentenced to death on charges including corruption on earth. HRANA reports that in addition to the revolutionary court's ruling, Zargar was also tried in another case on charges of violent assault in the sixth branch of the Tehran Criminal Court and sentenced to death. In this context, Hadi Irfaniyan, the lawyer for Davari, referred to as a '50-year-old translator and researcher,' stated that his client's death sentence was overturned by the Supreme Court earlier this month. The Iran newspaper published a report on February 12 about the execution of an individual described as the 'perpetrator of heinous crimes,' withholding the name and details of this person and their 'spouse,' but it appears to relate to the execution of Karim Zargar. The report states: 'The middle-aged man... by establishing a fake spiritual institute in Tehran and with the help of his wife, lured vulnerable women and girls into a devilish retreat to execute his dark plans.' The report continues: 'This couple was also tried non-publicly in the sixth branch of the Tehran Criminal Court for violent assault, and the devilish man was sentenced to death. This sentence was carried out recently, and the sentence for his wife will be executed after final confirmation.' Karim Zargar was also active in cinema, credited as a producer and actor in the film 'The Wedding of Good People' directed by Mohsen Makhmalbaf. Other cinematic works include 'The Tanker War' as an actor and 'Rajaee School' as a director.