Ahmad Montazeri Arrested in Special Clerical Court

Ahmad Montazeri, son of Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, was arrested on Wednesday, February 23, after being summoned to the Special Clerical Court. According to a statement released by the office of Ayatollah Montazeri on his official website, Ahmad Montazeri, who was called to the Special Clerical Court without receiving a formal summons, reported his arrest after a few hours. In this statement, Mr. Montazeri said: 'I have remained.' Following the release of an audio file of Ayatollah Montazeri regarding the executions of 1988 last December, he was sentenced to a total of 21 years in prison on charges of 'acting against national security through the release of confidential audio' and 'propaganda against the regime.' According to the ruling of the Special Clerical Court, due to the 'value and sanctity of the blood of the martyr brother' of Ahmad Montazeri, namely Mohammad Montazeri, and considering 'his age, specific situation, and lack of a criminal record, with an assessment of the average minimum and maximum penalties in execution,' only 6 years of this sentence will be enforced. The Special Clerical Court also sentenced Ahmad Montazeri to be stripped of his clerical robe, the enforcement of which was suspended for 3 years. In the audio file released last December, Ayatollah Montazeri referred to the mass execution of political prisoners in 1988 as 'the greatest crime' in the history of the Islamic Republic. The judicial officials present at this session included Hossein Ali Niri, the then judge, Morteza Eshraqi, the then prosecutor of Tehran, Ebrahim Raisi, the then deputy prosecutor, and Mostafa Pourmohammadi, the representative of the Ministry of Intelligence at Evin Prison at that time. In this audio file, Ayatollah Montazeri addressed the judicial officials present, stating that the executions of the summer of 1988 would condemn our history due to this crime. He called the judicial officials present at the session responsible for these executions and 'criminals.' A large number of political and ideological prisoners were executed in Iranian prisons during the months of August and September 1988. There is serious dispute over the number of those executed in the summer of 1988, and no specific figure has been announced for the victims of that summer. Ayatollah Montazeri estimated the number of these executions in his memoirs to be between 2,800 and 3,800. Human rights defenders have reported this figure to be close to five thousand. A handwritten note that was first reflected in Ayatollah Montazeri's memoirs indicates that the order for the executions was issued by Ayatollah Khomeini. The office of Ayatollah Montazeri described Ahmad Montazeri's court as an 'extrajudicial court' that has 'become a tool in the hands of officials to carry out their demands.' In this statement, the foundation of the Special Clerical Court was described as 'for the political interests of the powerful and has no jurisdiction to judge and intervene in matters for which its officials are themselves accused.' In this context, a statement by 151 political and civil activists protested against Montazeri's prison sentence. Ahmad Montazeri stated: 'Currently, I cannot release new documents.' Makarem Shirazi stated: 'The release of Montazeri's audio file was a retaliatory act that should be taken seriously.' Alim al-Huda stated: 'From the very beginning of the revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei was the second person in the country.' Shirin Ebadi stated: 'As long as criminals are in power, forgiveness is meaningless.'