Front Line Defenders Calls for Immediate Release of Imprisoned Lawyer Tahir Naqvi

The organization 'Front Line Defenders', active in the protection of human rights defenders, has called for the 'immediate and unconditional release' of Tahir Naqvi, a lawyer imprisoned in Evin prison, and for the charges against him to be dropped. In a statement, this human rights entity described Naqvi's 'legitimate human rights activities' as the reason for him being targeted by the Islamic Republic and emphasized the need for his immediate transfer to a medical facility and access to necessary medical care. Following Naqvi's hunger strike in protest against the 'fabrication of cases' by the security and judicial institutions of the Islamic Republic, he was transferred to Taleghani Hospital in Tehran on Wednesday, June 30, due to his deteriorating health, and was returned to Evin prison after a few hours. 'Front Line Defenders' demanded assurance that Naqvi's medical condition complies with the principles of the UN resolution on the protection of all detained or imprisoned individuals. This international human rights organization urged the Islamic Republic to stop targeting human rights defenders in Iran and to guarantee that the legitimate human rights activities of these individuals can be conducted without fear of retaliatory actions and restrictions such as judicial harassment. According to HRANA, the news agency of human rights activists in Iran, Mr. Naqvi, along with two other Azerbaijani activists, Abdulaziz Azimi Qadim and Hossein Peiri Qoshachay, has been on a hunger strike and medication strike since June 24. According to this report, he was beaten by prison officials after starting the hunger strike and was transferred to solitary confinement. Tahir Naqvi, a lawyer and resident of Karaj, was arrested on February 6 of last year and charged with 'propaganda against the regime' and 'collusion and conspiracy to disrupt national security' at the Evin Prosecutor's Office. He has also faced accusations including 'espionage' while representing several families of victims of the nationwide protests 'Women, Life, Freedom'. Recently, over 760 activists have called for 'public trials with the presence of a jury for Azerbaijani political activists in Iran'. Amnesty International, in a report on April 23 of this year, deemed the increase in discrimination and violence against ethnic, religious, sexual minorities, and other 'marginalized groups' as systematic. This human rights organization highlighted instances of systematic discrimination among 'ethnic minorities including Ahwazi Arabs, Azerbaijani Turks, Baluchis, Kurds, and Turkmen', emphasizing the 'intensification of poverty and marginalization' in these areas.