Five Charges Filed Against Mashallah Karami, Father of a Deceased Protester, in Court

Mashallah Karami, the father of Mohammad Mehdi Karami, an executed protester in Karaj, was charged on Wednesday, December 20, by the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office of Karaj with five counts, including 'membership in groups and organizations with the intent to act against the security of the country.' According to the Telegram channel of the Committee to Follow Up on the Status of Detainees, other security charges against this political prisoner, along with eight others in the indictment, include 'propaganda against the Islamic Republic, insulting sacred beliefs, and forming a group with the intent to disrupt the security of the country.' Mashallah Karami, who faced accusations such as 'fraud and exploitation of people's emotions' during interrogations, has also been charged with 'insulting the leadership' in the latest indictment. The security and judicial apparatus of the Islamic Republic has routinely accused opponents and critics of actions such as acting and propagating against the regime and insulting the Supreme Leader for over four decades since the establishment of this government. Previously, the Committee to Follow Up on the Status of Detainees announced that heavy pressures have been exerted on Mr. Karami to accept the charges of 'fraud and exploitation of people's emotions,' and it is possible that a video of his forced confessions may be released in the future. This human rights group emphasized that 'such cases of fabricating charges, which have a history, aim to discredit the faces and families of the seekers of justice and to undermine public trust in these individuals.' The security and judicial apparatus of the Islamic Republic has previously used televised 'confessions' to impose charges on detainees. Such actions have drawn criticism from activists and human rights organizations in Iran and worldwide. Earlier, a member of the families of the seekers of justice warned about the 'fabrication of cases' against Mashallah Karami and his lawyer, Amir Hossein Kouhkan, stating that the prosecutor of Karaj 'declared that unless they confess, they must remain in solitary confinement.' Mashallah Karami, who is currently in Qezel Hesar Prison in Alborz Province, was arrested by Ministry of Intelligence agents at his home in Karaj on August 22 of this year and transferred to the detention center of the Intelligence Office of this city. According to reports, after about 'two and a half months of solitary confinement,' he was transferred to Ward 15 of Qezel Hesar Prison on November 6. Following pressures from government forces, his wife and other son were forced to leave their home in November after repeated raids by agents and went to an unknown location. Mr. Karami's arrest has drawn significant criticism. In this context, two human rights organizations in Canada, the 'Global Alliance Against Discrimination' and the 'Mahdi Amin Foundation,' awarded the 'Courage Award of Majid Reza Rahnavard' to Mashallah Karami and Fatemeh Sepahri on December 12, the anniversary of the execution of this Iranian protester. Ms. Sepahri, a political prisoner opposing the Islamic Republic, is imprisoned in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad. In this regard, Helga Limburg, a member of the German Parliament from the Green Party, who had taken political sponsorship of Mohammad Mehdi Karami, announced that she has also accepted the political sponsorship of his father and lawyer. Ms. Limburg stated in an interview with the Persian section of Voice of America on October 20: 'We all saw those brave images of Mehdi Karami's parents after his burial. They went to the grave of another prisoner killed by the Islamic Republic because no one was at their gravesite. They went to that grave, paid their respects, and left a sign indicating that no one will be alone in this world or the next.'