Mehdi Karroubi's Eye Surgery Conducted by Health Minister of Rouhani's Government

Mehdi Karroubi, a leading figure in the protests following the June 2009 elections, underwent eye surgery on Wednesday night, June 6. According to the 'Saham News' website close to Karroubi, he was operated on by Dr. Hassan Ghazizadeh Hashemi, the Health Minister of Hassan Rouhani's government. Mohammad Hossein Karroubi, Mehdi Karroubi's son, announced this news, describing his father's general condition as satisfactory. Karroubi had been suffering from cataracts for some time, and one of his eyes was treated in this surgery, while the other eye is scheduled for surgery next month. As reported by Saham News, Karroubi had been examined several times by the Health Minister in recent months after developing cataracts. In mid-2013, due to severe back pain, knee arthritis, and severe gastrointestinal disorders, he was transferred to Laleh Hospital in Tehran for surgery based on the diagnosis of the Ministry of Intelligence's doctor. At that time, it was reported by relatives of this opposition candidate from the 2009 elections that three days after the surgery and before completing his recovery period in the hospital, Karroubi was transferred by security agents to a secure location of the Ministry of Intelligence. On Wednesday, it was also announced that Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of Mir Hossein Mousavi, who is under house arrest with him, also underwent eye surgery on Wednesday night at Noor Hospital in Tehran. According to the Khabar website, Mir Hossein Mousavi accompanied his wife to the hospital, and afterward, their daughters informed their father via phone about the 'successful completion of the surgery.' Mir Hossein Mousavi, Zahra Rahnavard, and Mehdi Karroubi, who protested the results of the 2009 presidential election, have been under house arrest without trial since February 2011. After three years of 'detention' in a 'secure house' of the Ministry of Intelligence, Mehdi Karroubi was moved to his home in Jamaran in February 2014 but remains under house arrest. The families of these three have repeatedly expressed concern about their physical condition over the years. Recently, Fatemeh Karroubi, Mehdi Karroubi's wife, criticized the Ministry of Intelligence's actions regarding the house arrest conditions of the two 2009 election candidates in a letter addressed to the Minister of Intelligence. In her letter, Mrs. Karroubi criticized the irresponsibility of the house arrest executors in Hassan Rouhani's government, emphasizing that there has been no significant change in the house arrest situation compared to the previous government. In another part of her letter addressed to Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence, she wrote that 'due to the inaction and irresponsibility of the Ministry of Intelligence, there is no effective liaison present at the house arrest location, and there is no way to resolve the most basic issues of Mehdi Karroubi, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard.' According to her, in the previous government, there was a liaison who made decisions on minor issues. One of the demands of supporters from Hassan Rouhani in the 2013 elections, as well as one of his campaign promises, was to lift the house arrest of Mehdi Karroubi, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard, a promise that has not been fulfilled despite the passage of two years.