Continued Detention of Protesters in Iran; Yaser Rahmani-Rad and Zeynab Kazemi Arrested Again

Following increased government pressure, Yaser Rahmani-Rad, a general practitioner and one of the detainees from last year's nationwide protests, was arrested on Thursday, September 21, in Khorramabad. A source informed Voice of America that four government agents detained him after searching his home and confiscating the mobile phones of him and his family members. No information has been released regarding the charges against this former prisoner or his place of detention. Earlier, HRANA, the news agency of human rights activists in Iran, reported that Yaser Rahmani-Rad was summoned to the Revolutionary Court in Khorramabad in August this year on charges of 'spreading falsehoods' and 'disturbing public opinion' after he informed about the eye injuries of protesters from last year's nationwide protests. Yaser Rahmani-Rad was arrested last December after traveling to Mahabad to assist in treating injured protesters in that city and was later released on bail. Human rights sources also reported the renewed arrest of Zeynab Kazemi, an engineer opposed to compulsory hijab, on Monday, September 18, in Tehran. This 38-year-old engineer was sentenced to 74 lashes last winter for 'offending public decency' after she removed her hijab at a public meeting of the Engineering Organization of Tehran Province. In a message, Zeynab Kazemi rejected the charges against her and described the court's ruling as 'humiliating,' predicting that, under the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, she would soon be deemed guilty like many others. In recent weeks, especially coinciding with the anniversary of the deaths of protesters, pressure on the families of victims and activists from various sectors, including human rights, civil, political, labor, and teachers, has intensified. Fatemeh Heydari, sister of Javad Heydari, one of the victims of the nationwide protests, reported on her X (formerly Twitter) page on Wednesday, September 20, the arrest of her brother and some of her relatives aimed at 'increasing pressure on the family to prevent the holding of the anniversary ceremony' for her brother. She emphasized in her message that she has 'no fear' of government 'mercenaries.' In recent days, government agents have at least prevented the holding of memorials for Mahsa (Zhina) Amini and Nika Shakerami. The intensification of pressure on the families of victims and the continued detention of citizens has been reported by the Committee for Monitoring the Status of Detainees: at least 600 women were arrested on September 15. The Islamic Republic's efforts to prevent the holding of memorials for the victims of the protests have led to the cancellation of Nika Shakerami's anniversary under security pressures; Nika's mother stated, 'We cannot stand against the force, oppression, and tyranny of the ruling system empty-handed.'