Arrest of Ali Jahaniyan, Political Activist; He Claimed the Concerns of the Iranian People Are Not About the Death of Haniyeh and Gaza and Lebanon

In the continuation of arrests ahead of the second anniversary of the nationwide protests of 2021 following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police, Ali Jahaniyan, a political activist and poet residing in Hamadan, was arrested at his home by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence. A source close to Ali Jahaniyan informed Voice of America that this civil activist and poet from Hamadan was arrested on Tuesday, September 19, along with his wife, Fereshteh Soori, by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence in this province. According to the informed source, Ms. Soori was released after a few hours of detention, but Mr. Jahaniyan was transferred to the detention center of the Intelligence Department. The informed source also stated that government agents searched their home and confiscated the couple's electronic devices. Based on a video received by Voice of America, Mr. Jahaniyan had previously criticized the regional positions of the Islamic Republic and Ali Khamenei's statements regarding the 'blood vengeance' for the death of Ismail Haniyeh, stating: 'Hassan Nasrallahs and Ismail Haniyehs are not worth a single hair of the brave youth of Iran.' He emphasized that 'unlike the officials, the concerns of the Iranian people are not about the death of Ismail Haniyeh, Palestine, Gaza, Lebanon, Arbaeen, and compulsory hijab.' He insisted that 'if executions and arrests are intended to create fear and terror, the officials of the Islamic Republic should know that this nation is no longer afraid of arrests, and we are the nation seeking justice for the young people of Iran whose blood has been unjustly shed.' Mr. Jahaniyan has a history of previous arrests. In recent months, in response to government officials' denial regarding the torture of Nika Shakerami, a teenager killed by the Islamic Republic's forces during the 2021 protests, he recounted his personal experience of torture, stating that in early spring 2023, due to criticisms he had made against the Supreme Leader, he was rendered unconscious by a group of plainclothes agents and was beaten to the brink of death for over 48 hours, which caused him to lose consciousness multiple times, and he was left on the street in another city and later revived in a hospital. The wave of arrests ahead of the second anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death, which led to months of nationwide protests in Iran, has intensified by the Islamic Republic's officials in various cities. In the days leading up to the second anniversary of this event, several citizens and civil activists have been arrested, and the Islamic Republic's agents have also increased pressure on the families of those seeking justice. Mahsa (Zhina) Amini died a few days after being arrested by the morality police on September 25, 2022, in Kowsar Hospital in Tehran, and her death sparked widespread protests across Iran that continued for months in the streets, universities, and schools. During the suppression of the nationwide protests of 2021 by government forces, hundreds of citizens were killed, and thousands were injured and arrested. Ahead of the second anniversary of these protests, several student organizations and students in Iran issued a statement emphasizing that they continue to stand against 'this inhumane government' and will fight to 'permanently challenge' and 'destroy' it. In the students' statement, it is stated: 'We neither forgive, nor forget, nor express regret, nor fear, and we do not turn back from the path we have taken. The Islamic Republic will be destroyed sooner or later by the revolutionary victory that is flowing in the veins of society.'