Lawyer: Ministry of Intelligence is the complainant against Hengameh Shahidi

The lawyer of Hengameh Shahidi, a journalist, emphasized that there has been no change in her client's situation, stating that the Ministry of Intelligence is the complainant against this imprisoned journalist, and Ali Motahari, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, is not satisfied with the responses from the Minister of Intelligence regarding this matter. Mostafa Torkhamdani, Ms. Shahidi's lawyer, said in an interview with ILNA on Tuesday, June 13, that Hengameh Shahidi's situation remains the same and no decision has been issued for her. He reported that Ali Motahari had posed a question to the Minister of Intelligence regarding Ms. Shahidi's detention but was not satisfied with the answers provided. Mr. Torkhamdani also mentioned that at the request of the families of detained Telegram channel managers, he spoke with Ali Motahari about this case, but he has not yet announced his representation in this case. This lawyer had previously stated that Hengameh Shahidi was arrested on "security charges" by the second investigative branch of the Tehran Culture and Media Prosecutor's Office. Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesperson for the Iranian judiciary, also announced at the end of Farvardin that the Ministry of Intelligence had arrested this journalist and political activist. Ms. Shahidi was arrested on March 9, 2017, and despite more than three months passing, the reason for her detention remains unclear. This imprisoned journalist had been on a hunger strike for a period. Eventually, her family reported in June that she had been transferred for a few hours to a medical center in Tehran and was examined and treated by a heart specialist. Ms. Shahidi, in a brief meeting with her family members, stated that she is still in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin Prison and is interrogated for 12 hours a day. According to this journalist, "the interrogators are trying to extract forced and false confessions from her." Recently, Hengameh Shahidi, in a letter addressed to President Hassan Rouhani, linked her detention to the presidential elections in May, stating that the IRGC Intelligence Organization and the Ministry of Intelligence are working on a "joint project" for the "widespread detention of journalists and political and civil activists." The human rights organization Amnesty International expressed serious concern about Ms. Shahidi's physical condition in a statement on Friday, April 7, and called for her release. Ali Motahari, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, on April 20, requested an explanation from the Minister of Intelligence regarding the "prolonged" detention of this journalist and political activist. In the previous Esfand, besides Hengameh Shahidi, managers of several Telegram channels and a number of journalists, including Morad Saghafi and Ehsan Mazandarani, as well as Ramin Karimi, a researcher and translator, were arrested. According to reports, Morad Saghafi has been released, but no report has been published regarding Ramin Karimi's status. Hassan Rouhani requested on Saturday, April 25, that the Minister of Interior prepare a report on the "suspicious" detention of several media activists ahead of the elections and prevent the "illegal" interference of certain institutions in the elections. Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence of Iran, also announced that the government opposes the detention of Telegram channel managers.