Exclusive; Charges Against 14 Detainees from Armita Garavand's Funeral: Gathering and Conspiracy

According to an exclusive report from the Persian section of Voice of America, 14 detainees from the funeral of Armita Garavand, the deceased teenager, have been transferred to the quarantine section of Evin Prison on charges of 'gathering and conspiracy.' These individuals, named Hamid Abbaspour, Hashem Mehrabian, Majid Houshang Kianpour, Mohammad Reza Fahim, Mehran Haji Hashemi, Asghar Seyedfaraji, Ali Soukhteza, Ramtin Bandeh, Masoud Zeynalzadeh, Iman Miri, Siamak Masihpour, Mohammad Mahdi Mohammadi Rahbari, Youssef Hoshyar, and Mohammad Farzollah, have been accused by Branch 7 of Evin's investigative court of 'gathering and conspiracy.' Human rights sources had previously reported the detention of several participants at Armita Garavand's funeral on Sunday, November 7. Nasrin Sotoudeh, a human rights lawyer, Manzar Zarabi, from the families of the victims of the Ukrainian plane crash, and Mohammad Garavand were also reported among the detainees. According to the state news agency Fars, Nasrin Sotoudeh is charged with 'removing the hijab and activities against the psychological security of society.' The detention of mourners at Armita Garavand's funeral has faced criticism from human rights and professional organizations. Amnesty International stated that the Iranian authorities launched a coordinated campaign for 'denying and distorting the truth' about the circumstances leading to Armita Garavand's death for four weeks and then, during the funeral of this teenager, arrested mourners with 'impudence' to silence any calls for truth and justice. The Coordinating Council of Cultural Associations of Iran also condemned the 'murder' of Armita Garavand, a 16-year-old student, for not wearing the mandatory hijab, criticizing the security crackdown and media censorship by the Islamic Republic in dealing with this event. Abolfazl Ghadiani stated that Khamenei is responsible for Armita Garavand's death. Professional associations of educators reported that Armita Garavand's family was threatened with silence during the mourning ceremony. Emphasis on dealing with opponents of the mandatory hijab came just one day after Armita Garavand's burial. Nighttime slogans protesting Armita Garavand's death included 'Death to the child-killing regime.'