Hengaw: Shoja Hosseinzadeh Forced to Read a 'Repentance Letter'; He Faces Charges of 'Insulting the Prophet'

The human rights organization 'Hengaw' announced on Sunday, July 23, that Shoja Hosseinzadeh, the manager of the Telegram channel 'Baneh News', is at risk of facing severe sentences such as execution. According to Hengaw, this media activist has been detained for the past four months on charges of 'insulting the sacred' and 'insulting the Prophet' and has been in a state of uncertainty. The report states that Mr. Hosseinzadeh spent about 70 days in solitary confinement at the Baneh Intelligence Office and was deprived of personal visits, phone calls, and access to a lawyer. Hengaw reported that he was forced to read a 'repentance letter' in the presence of security agencies and members of Salafi groups on the day of his arrest. This media activist was transferred to the central prison of Sanandaj about six weeks ago and is currently in a state of uncertainty there. According to Hengaw, the Telegram channel and Instagram page of Baneh News, which was managed by Mr. Hosseinzadeh, have been blocked by security agencies' orders. The family home of this media activist has also been subjected to several attacks and raids by members of fundamentalist religious groups (Salafi), and the security forces of the Islamic Republic have not reacted to this. Civil activists and human rights groups in the Kurdish regions of Iran have repeatedly accused the Islamic Republic of supporting Salafi and fundamentalist groups in recent years. The Federation of Journalists has called for the release of imprisoned journalists; media repression is condemned.