Exclusive | 'Case Fabrication' for a Political Prisoner; Prosecutor's Order in Khuzestan for 'Eavesdropping' on Majid Khademi's Calls

Following continued pressures on Majid Khademi, a political prisoner in Behbahan prison, a knowledgeable source told Voice of America that 'the Attorney General's Office of Khuzestan Province has issued an order for the eavesdropping and monitoring of Majid Khademi's calls and communications.' A source close to Majid Khademi, who is serving a six-year and five-month sentence in Behbahan prison, stated on Thursday, April 5, that this political prisoner is 'severely pursued and monitored by the Attorney General's Office and the Behbahan Prosecutor's Office, as well as the Ministry of Intelligence for further case fabrication.' According to this source, after Helga Lind, a German parliamentarian, took on the political sponsorship of this imprisoned civil activist, 'the Attorney General's Office of Khuzestan Province reviewed Majid Khademi's case during a trip to Behbahan and issued an order requiring Ziai, the Behbahan prosecutor, and Hosseini, the supervising judge of the prison, to monitor him.' The informed source also added that 'the Ministry of Intelligence has warned the judicial officials in Behbahan that they will not tolerate any changes in Majid Khademi's case without consulting the Ministry of Intelligence.' Furthermore, the Ministry of Intelligence officials stated that 'if the prohibition of Majid's virtual presence is accepted' and news related to this political prisoner is not published, 'they might later agree to conditional release with daily attendance.' According to previous reports from Voice of America, Majid Khademi has developed a skin disease in Behbahan prison. The informed source regarding Majid Khademi's health condition told Voice of America that 'medical attention to his condition is so poor that he often falls asleep at night in pain and burning from the bruised areas of his body. He is facing physical weakness, skin itching, bruising, and bleeding.' This source also emphasized that the prevention of Majid Khademi's conditional release comes while he has 'served one-third of his sentence' and according to conditional release laws, 'he qualifies for it.' Previously, Helga Lind, the German legislator who has taken on the political sponsorship of Majid Khademi, had called for his immediate release, citing his physical condition and deprivation of medical services. The political sponsor of Majid Khademi stated that as global media attention decreases, the people of Iran continue to suffer from the pressures of 'a ruthless regime' where 'arbitrary arrests, torture, and death sentences' have become commonplace, asserting that this political prisoner has been imprisoned on 'baseless charges' and 'needs immediate attention.' Majid Khademi, a political prisoner who was previously held in 'temporary detention' from 2019 to 2021, faces multiple cases in the judiciary. In one of these cases, he was sentenced to '10 years in prison,' of which 'six years and three months are enforceable,' and in the summer of this year, he was again sentenced in a new case to more than four years in prison and 45 lashes. This political prisoner was granted a seven-day leave earlier this year after posting a bail of five billion tomans and guaranteeing four salary slips, but he was then returned to prison.