Khosrow Alikordi, Lawyer for Political Prisoners and Families Seeking Justice, Summoned Again by the Judiciary

Khosrow Alikordi, a lawyer representing several political prisoners and families seeking justice, announced his summons to the Revolutionary Court of Mashhad in a new case. In a copy of this summons that Khosrow Alikordi published on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, February 7, he is accused of 'propaganda against the regime.' Alikordi, who is the lawyer for Fatemeh Sepehri and the family of the seeking justice for Abolfazl Adinehzadeh, wrote alongside the publication of his summons: 'The Islamic Republic deemed a one-year prison sentence, two years of exile, two years of disqualification from practicing law, two years of prohibition from leaving the country, and two years of ban from activity in cyberspace, which had previously been definitively issued against Khosrow Alikordi, as insufficient.' This set of convictions relates to a case in which the judicial authorities of the Islamic Republic accused Khosrow Alikordi of 'disclosing secrets' and 'spreading falsehoods.' Previously, in an interview with Voice of America, he emphasized that the Islamic Republic has a fundamental problem with the independence of the legal profession from the government and the judiciary, and does not tolerate independent lawyers. In this context, the Supreme Court of Judges recently questioned the validity of the laws of the Iranian Bar Association, known as SCODA, stating that this association is not considered a component of the Bar Association or an affiliated institution. Recently, Sina Yousfi, a lawyer residing in Germany, reported the issuance of an indictment against three lawyers named Mehdi Karimi Farsi, Sadegh Mostafavi Kashani, and Abouzar Nasrollahi on charges of 'propaganda against the regime.' Sina Yousfi mentioned that the reason for the indictment was the refusal of these three lawyers to sign a commitment letter, stating that the judiciary is trying to 'eliminate all active lawyers in human rights cases.' Behnam Darayizadeh, a legal expert, described the pressures on lawyers following the widespread protests of 2021 as unprecedented in the last three decades. The cancellation of the SCODA elections by the judiciary; Sina Yousfi told Voice of America: 'It is a violation of people's defense rights.' Pressure on lawyers to obtain 'commitment letters'; issuance of indictments against three lawyers. Nasrin Hassani, a journalist, was imprisoned on charges of 'spreading falsehoods' and not adhering to 'Islamic hijab.' Lawyer Mohammad Qabadi stated: 'His execution was unjust and led to the slaughter of law and Sharia.'