Ghorbanali Daryanajafi Opposed the Transfer of Protesters to Kahrizak

Ghorbanali Daryanajafi, the former Attorney General of Iran, emphasized that the 'repentance' of Saeed Mortazavi no longer has any effect, stating that in 2009 he ordered that prisoners not be transferred to Kahrizak detention center, but Mr. Mortazavi issued orders for the transfer either 'autonomously or non-autonomously.' According to the state news agency IRNA, Ghorbanali Daryanajafi, speaking on Thursday evening, October 1, referred to Mortazavi's letter and said, 'Their repentance has no effect anymore; it has caused heavy losses for the country.' Daryanajafi's current stance implicitly indicates that judicial and law enforcement officials of the Islamic Republic were aware of the dire and abnormal conditions at Kahrizak in 2009 and, naturally, transferred protesters to this location knowing the situation. Therefore, it seems unlikely that Daryanajafi's reminiscing on Thursday would serve as a balm for the wounds of the families of the young Kahrizak victims. On Thursday, he also stressed that as the Attorney General, he opposed 'some actions and behaviors of officials' and was against the transfer of detainees from the protests following the 2009 presidential election to Kahrizak, insisting that this should not happen. However, according to Fars News Agency, Daryanajafi said, 'At that time, I personally even faced stones, but since responsibility was in the hands of some individuals, I was unsuccessful.' He added, 'As the Attorney General, I ordered that the transfer of prisoners not take place, and even Mr. Ejei and others expressed their opposition to this issue, but they acted incorrectly either autonomously or non-autonomously.' This statement is merely an endorsement of the security margin that has long been said to have been enjoyed by Saeed Mortazavi in his judicial capacity. Daryanajafi has now, after seven years, declared for the first time that as Attorney General, he opposed the transfer of prisoners to Kahrizak. He did not provide further details about the specifics of the transfer of prisoners to this detention center and other officials who were involved in this matter. Saeed Mortazavi, the former public and revolutionary prosecutor of Tehran, expressed 'shame' and 'apology' in a letter submitted to the appeals court regarding the events of 2009 at Kahrizak prison. In response to this letter, some family members of the victims of this detention center stated in an interview with Shargh newspaper that 'we do not forgive' and 'this is a wound that cannot be forgotten with an apology.' Mohammad Reza Zaeri, a principlist cleric, also called for the issuance of a 'death sentence for Saeed Mortazavi.' In this context, Bahram Parsai, the spokesperson for the Hope faction in the parliament, also stated that 'the reality is that Mortazavi has not apologized but has confessed to the mistakes he has made over the past seven years.' Daryanajafi also mentioned, 'During my time as Attorney General, due to the negligence of some individuals, a woman died as a result of an incident, which led to the severing of relations between the Canadian government and Iran.' Zahra Kazemi, an Iranian-Canadian journalist, was arrested in 2003 on charges of photographing a gathering of some families of prisoners in front of Evin prison and was killed in custody. The Tehran prosecutor's office announced that the cause of her death was 'fainting and hitting her head on the ground, ultimately leading to a brain injury,' but the investigative committee of the sixth parliament accused Saeed Mortazavi of beating Zahra Kazemi during her detention. Ghorbanali Daryanajafi served as Attorney General from 2004 to 2009, but after the election of Sadegh Larijani as head of the judiciary, Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei was appointed to this position, and Daryanajafi was later selected as the Friday prayer leader of Arak and representative of the Supreme Leader in Markazi Province.