An Iranian Teachers' Union: Jafar Ebrahimi Remains Imprisoned Despite Completing His Sentence

On Sunday, the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions issued a statement condemning the continued illegal detention of Jafar Ebrahimi, a political prisoner and teacher, and called for his immediate and unconditional release. The council wrote on its Telegram channel that despite the completion of Ebrahimi's prison term, security forces and the judiciary are refusing to release him. According to the report, the prosecutor's office is using the period of medical leave as an excuse to impose additional imprisonment on this political prisoner, extending his sentence beyond the end of his term. This teachers' union claims this is another method used by the government to harass political and ideological prisoners, and that such actions will never block the legal demands of union activists. Jafar Ebrahimi, along with several other union activists, was arrested on April 29, 2022, and sentenced to two years in prison, which, considering the time spent in temporary detention in a previous case, should have led to his release on March 19, 2024. In addition to him, Rasoul Badaghi, Hashem Khastar, Nahid Shirpiseh, Zeinab Hamrang, Javad Laleh Mohammadi, Mohammad Hossein Sepahri, and Ahmad Alizadeh are other teachers currently imprisoned in the Islamic Republic's jails. In recent years, the government's efforts to suppress teachers and union activists have intensified. Judicial authorities of the Islamic Republic have summoned, tried, and sentenced some activists on the eve of Nowruz. Teachers' unions express hope that the demands of the people will be realized in the new year. The continuation of judicial actions against teachers' union activists is evident as Nowruz 1403 approaches. The General Union of Iranian Teachers reported that two teachers' union activists from Gilan have been granted leave connected to their release. The Ministry of Education has issued warnings to teachers, stating that mobile phone use in schools is only permitted within the 'framework of education.' Mohammad Moradi Nasari, a Kurdish teacher, was dismissed from his job due to a 'negative inquiry from a security agency.'