Defendants in the 'Ekbatana Case' Summoned for 'Final Defense'

A human rights group reported the summons of five political prisoners in the case known as 'Ekbatana Township' related to the nationwide protests of 2022, stating that Branch 13 of the Criminal Court has called them for 'final defense.' The legal advisors group, Dadban, reported on Thursday, November 3, that 'Navid Najaran, Milad Azmoon, Mohammad Mahdi Hosseini, Mehdi Imani, and Amir Mahdi Rezaei' are the defendants summoned by this court, and according to this report, the court's ruling will be issued on November 12. The case of these detained protesters, referred to as 'the Ekbatana kids,' had been sent back to the investigative branch for 'correction' and four of the defendants, namely Navid Najaran, Mehdi Imani, Milad Armon, and Mohammad Mahdi Hosseini, were handed over to the IRGC Intelligence Organization for what was termed 'further investigation.' According to previous reports, the four main defendants in this case, who have been in detention for two years, spent much of this time in solitary confinement and under pressure from various institutions, including the IRGC and the police. In early November 2022, following the death of a Basij member named Arman Ali-Vardi in Ekbatana Township, over 50 protesters residing in this township in western Tehran were arrested, and the judiciary issued indictments for 14 of them. Despite the passage of two years, the cases of Milad Armon, Mohammad Mahdi Hosseini, Mehdi Imani, and Navid Najaran are still pending in Branch 4 of the Tehran Criminal Court's investigative office and have not yet been sent to Branch 13 of the Tehran Criminal Court for consideration. The 'Ekbatana kids' case was returned from the court to the prosecutor's office in April of this year due to what was termed a 'confidential defect'; according to Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, the lawyer for one of the defendants, this case is in the stage of 'completing the requested investigations by the court.' Hossein Raeisi, a legal expert and attorney, previously told VOA that the return of the case to the prosecutor's office indicates that thorough investigations have not been conducted, which is a cause for optimism as it may lead to the cancellation of the charge of 'moharebeh,' which carries the death penalty.