Iran's Attorney General Warns: We Will Take Legal Action Against Influential Figures in Shirazi Movement

The Attorney General of Iran has warned in a televised interview that the judiciary will take "legal action" against the "influential figures" in the movement supporting Sadeq Shirazi. Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, in a special news interview broadcast on Saturday evening, March 10, stated that the "suicide" of Kavous Imamini in prison lasted no more than "15 minutes" and that the issue of hijab is "not a joke." In this television interview, the Attorney General referred to the attack by some supporters of Ayatollah Sadeq Shirazi on the Iranian embassy in London, accusing "this movement," which he claims has been active in Iran for years with its center in Qom, of planning to create "disunity among Islamic nations and sects." He reminded that "a year or two ago, a message was sent to this movement and its leaders in Qom that their actions at this time are inappropriate and should be corrected to prevent the division between Shia and Sunni from increasing day by day." Montazeri also commented on the arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi, the son of Ayatollah Sadeq Shirazi, stating that "the judiciary and the clerical court sent them a message to cease this movement, which unfortunately was not accepted, and... under the charges brought, the special clerical prosecutor summoned this individual several times, and after he refused to respond, the authorities arrested him to clarify the charges and conduct investigations." The arrest of Hossein Shirazi occurred last week following his critical speech regarding the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist, and last Friday, March 8, a group identifying themselves as supporters of Ayatollah Sadeq Shirazi attacked the Iranian embassy in London in protest of this arrest, which led to their eventual detention by British police. Nevertheless, the Attorney General of Iran accused the British police of being merely "spectators" in this incident and added that "there is evidence and indications that show this movement is supported by Britain." Montazeri expressed hope that Iranian Foreign Ministry officials could "through consultations with this aggressive and rogue government, restore the rights of the Iranian people and that they compensate for this ugly act." He also warned that "the judiciary will certainly not remain silent against a group that stands against the law and acts contrary to legal regulations, and will take legal action against the influential figures in this movement." The Shirazi family, known for their traditional and conservative views, is one of the prominent families of Shia clerics in the last couple of centuries, with Mirza Shirazi, known for his famous fatwa against tobacco use during the reign of Naser al-Din Shah, being one of its notable figures. However, since the establishment of the Islamic Republic, due to the critical stance of prominent figures from this family towards the leaders of the Islamic Republic, particularly regarding the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist, the Iranian government has always imposed severe restrictions on them. For instance, during Ayatollah Khomeini's leadership, Ayatollah Mohammad Shirazi, a cleric and brother of Ayatollah Sadeq Shirazi, was almost under house arrest. The current leader of the Islamic Republic and his appointees have repeatedly explicitly and implicitly linked the Shirazi family and their supporters to Britain, referring to them as "British clerics." In the incident of the attack on Saudi diplomatic facilities in Tehran and Mashhad, while it later became clear that hardline figures close to Iranian conservatives led the attack, initially judicial officials and some members of the Iranian parliament attempted to attribute the leadership of this incident to the Shirazi household. In response to the attack on its embassy in London, Iran summoned Nicholas Hopton, the British ambassador in Tehran, and Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the spokesperson for Hassan Rouhani's government, stated that Tehran would show a "decisive reaction" to this attack. While the attackers described their action as a protest against the arrest of Ayatollah Sadeq Shirazi's son, reports indicate that Ayatollah Shirazi was dissatisfied with this action. The Attorney General also referred to the alleged "suicide" of several prisoners in Iranian prisons, claiming that a "spy network" operating under the guise of environmental support was identified. He introduced Kavous Seyed Emami, a sociologist and professor at Imam Sadeq University, as one of the "key elements" of this network, stating that he was "accused of espionage [and] was being kept in a suitable place with necessary precautions, but took advantage of the opportunity and perhaps due to the negligence of the guard, committed suicide in a matter of minutes, lasting no more than 15 to 16 minutes." This judicial official added that recent suicides in Iranian prisons have been "only two or three cases and are rare." Montazeri compared the rate of "suicide" in European and American prisons as "high" and added that despite this, "this issue is not highlighted, but when in Iran, among over 200,000 prisoners, two or three individuals commit suicide for political reasons, this issue is manipulated and surfed upon." He simultaneously urged prison officials to take better care of prisoners to prevent them from committing such "disgraceful acts." These statements come after Ramin Seyed Emami, the son of Kavous Seyed Emami, previously wrote on his personal blog that based on a video shown to him, it took seven hours from the moment his father was taken to another room until his body was found. Kavous Seyed Emami, a professor at Imam Sadeq University and CEO of the "Persian Wildlife Heritage" institute, held dual Iranian-Canadian citizenship. The news of his suicide was communicated to his wife about two weeks after his arrest on February 20. Among the charges against Mr. Seyed Emami was the collection of classified information in strategic areas under the guise of scientific and environmental projects. Recently, Maryam Mombini, Seyed Emami's wife, who intended to leave Iran for Canada with her two children, was prevented from exiting by security agents. The Attorney General also reacted to statements made by Tayebeh Raji, daughter of Mohammad Raji, a Gonabadi dervish, who claimed that her father died due to "injuries sustained" during his arrest, stating that "another individual who has recently been surfed upon was someone who died during the unrest in Pasdaran Street." Montazeri did not mention the name of Mohammad Raji, who was a commander during the Iran-Iraq war, adding that he "was kept in legal medicine for several days because he was unidentified, while it was claimed that he was killed under torture." According to Mr. Raji's daughter, the cause of his death was communicated to his family by law enforcement officers due to "injuries sustained" during his arrest, and after that, law enforcement insisted that the body of this Gonabadi dervish be buried at night and only in the presence of family members. Mr. Raji's body was buried last week in the city of Aligudarz with a small number of family members and law enforcement present. The Attorney General also stated that regarding the public protests by some women in Iran against mandatory hijab, "the issue of hijab is not a joke, and a person who is a Muslim must observe hijab." He stated that "from a legal and lawful perspective, a person may not even believe in Islam and may belong to a religious minority and have no belief in hijab, but this person must also understand that in our Islamic Republic system, we have laws regarding hijab, and if someone wants to unveil in front of people, according to the law, they are a criminal." He described the removal of hijab by some Iranian women as a "satanic policy" pursued by "enemies," adding that "in various networks, websites, and channels related to them, efforts are being made to undermine this sacred and effective matter for women and deceive some people." This judicial official added that "enlightened citizens and those committed to the law" must also observe the hijab law. Montazeri's remarks regarding hijab come after the leader of the Islamic Republic described protests against mandatory hijab in Iran as "insignificant and small." Ali Khamenei, in his first position after the protests against mandatory hijab, characterized these protests as a result of "the massive propaganda of enemies and their exorbitant costs to negatively influence the issue of hijab." While the scale of these protests has been such that in recent weeks, some critics have referred to religious and political historical cases to criticize the continuation of mandatory hijab, the leader of the Islamic Republic added that only "a few deceived girls" have removed their headscarves "here and there."