A Judicial Official Reports Issuance of 150 Sentences for Defendants in the Pasdaran Street Incident

The head of Tehran's Revolutionary Courts announced the issuance of long-term and short-term prison sentences for 150 detained dervishes involved in the clashes on Pasdaran Street. Mousa Ghazanfari-Abadi stated in an interview with IRIB News Agency on Sunday, June 9, that 'some defendants have been sentenced to short prison terms due to the nature of the charges, while others have received long-term sentences.' He mentioned that some trials of the imprisoned dervishes will be held publicly, depending on the judge's decision. Ghazanfari-Abadi did not specify the length of the sentences issued for the imprisoned dervishes. In recent weeks, reports have emerged about six and seven-year prison sentences for some of the detained dervishes. Fa'ezeh Abdi-Pour, a dervish activist, reported on her Twitter page that 'a total of 119 years of punitive imprisonment, exile, and lashes have been issued for 23 Gonabadi dervishes.' The trials of hundreds of Gonabadi dervishes began on May 11 in branches 15 and 26 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran. 'Conspiracy and collusion against security,' 'action against national security,' 'disruption of public order,' and 'defiance of police orders' are the common charges against several dervishes. Some Gonabadi dervishes have also been tried in the Tehran Criminal Court, where their charge was stated as 'disruption of public order and comfort.' A comparison of the charges against Gonabadi dervishes shows that heavier charges have been assigned to those whose cases are being reviewed in the Revolutionary Court. Meanwhile, the International Federation for Human Rights, on May 15, referred to the trial of the detained dervishes as accompanied by 'secrecy,' calling it a 'mockery of justice' and a 'clear violation of international standards.' Reports indicate that over 500 Gonabadi dervishes were arrested during the clashes on Pasdaran Street, with more than 300 of them still imprisoned. The protest gathering of Gonabadi dervishes on February 19 last year around the house of Noor Ali Tabandeh, the leader of this order, turned violent due to the intervention of security forces and motorcycle-clad plainclothes agents. Reports of severe 'beatings' of the detained dervishes and 'fractures of the skull, jaw, and several teeth' and the poor physical condition of some of them have been published. Mohammad Raji, a detained Gonabadi dervish, also died a few days after his arrest. While the website 'Majzooban Noor' reported the death of this Gonabadi dervish during 'interrogation,' judicial officials denied that Mr. Raji died in police custody, claiming he was killed during the clashes in the street. Meanwhile, numerous reports have emerged about the poor physical condition of several imprisoned Gonabadi dervishes and their failure to be sent to the hospital. Noor Ali Tabandeh also hinted at his 'house arrest' in a video on March 6. Additionally, reports indicate that eight Gonabadi dervishes in Greater Tehran Prison have gone on hunger strike, demanding an end to Noor Ali Tabandeh's house arrest and the release of '360 dervishes' who have been in temporary detention since the events on Golestan 7th Street in Pasdaran. Mohammad Reza Thalath, one of the Gonabadi dervishes, has been sentenced to death by the court for allegedly running over three police officers with a bus during these clashes.