Hundreds of Civil Society and Women's Rights Activists Condemn Recent Arrests

About four hundred civil society activists and women's rights advocates condemned the recent arrests in Gilan and the intensified pressures on civil activists and the families of victims in a statement, calling for a "halt to the fabrication of cases" and the unconditional release of all detained activists. In this statement, a copy of which was sent to Voice of America, the "threats, summons, and arrests of the families of the deceased" from the nationwide protests ahead of the anniversary of the killing of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini are described as a sign of the regime's use of "all repressive tools" to prevent memorials for the deceased. In recent weeks, many families of victims and a wide range of civil and political activists have been threatened, summoned, or arrested by security agencies. Part of the statement assesses the mass arrests of women's rights activists and political activists in Gilan as part of the "repetition of discredited scenarios" by intelligence agencies and due to the regime's "fear" of the approaching anniversary of the nationwide protests. According to this statement, so far only "Vahideh Khushsirat" and "Negin Rezaei," two of the twelve activists arrested in Gilan, have been released on bail, while the other detainees remain "in custody" of security forces. Following the arrest of several women's rights activists and political activists in various cities of Gilan province on August 16, the Gilan Intelligence Department claimed without providing any evidence that the detainees intended "subversive actions." The signatories of this statement rejected the Ministry of Intelligence's claim that two of the detainees had been trained by "enemy intelligence services abroad," stating that these individuals are "well-known names in Iran's civil society." Previously, the Gilan Prosecutor's Office had announced that, except for Jaleh Javaheri and Forough Sami'nia, bail would be issued for the other detainees. In another section, civil activists and women's rights advocates, referring to the "extensive propaganda" of the Iranian government about "general amnesty," reported the continuation of case fabrication, issuance, and enforcement of prison sentences for several detainees. The statement emphasizes that the "pressures exerted" on social activists and gender equality advocates will not lead to a retreat of the people, especially women, from their demands. Among the signatories of this statement are Atena Daemi, Taraneh Alidoosti, Barbad Golshiri, Khadijeh Pakzamir, Parvin Ardalan, Zhila Baniyaghoub, Noushin Ahmadikhah Khorasani, Aliyeh Matlabi Zadeh, Kaveh Kermanshahi, and Nira Touhidi. Hamidreza Taghipour: The arrest of the families of victims will intensify citizens' protests. Lack of information about the situation of detainees in Gilan; the mother of Houman Taheri: My son is deprived of contact. Exclusive; the brother of Mohammad Hajirasouli, one of the victims of the protests: We will not rest until freedom is achieved. A joint statement from the families of victims, coinciding with summons and pressures: You cannot make us stateless. The Coordination Council of Teachers' Trade Unions: The arrests are a sign of the regime's panic.