Nasrin Sotoudeh Files Complaint Against Evin Prison Chief; Continued Detention of Ghasem Shoaleh Saadi and Arash Keykhosravi

Following the news of Nasrin Sotoudeh's complaint against the chief of Evin Prison, the lawyer for Ghasem Shoaleh Saadi and Arash Keykhosravi announced that the detention of these two lawyers continues despite bail being set for them. Peyman Darafshan, Nasrin Sotoudeh's lawyer, reported on Sunday, November 20, that his client has filed a complaint against the chief of Evin Prison and the judicial deputy of the prison for issuing an order to prohibit her from receiving visitors. He stated that this complaint has been accepted by the Government Employees Court and referred to the first investigative branch of this court for processing. According to Mr. Darafshan, he and other lawyers for Nasrin Sotoudeh attended the investigative branch and presented their explanations regarding the illegality of the actions of the prison chief and his deputy to the investigator. Previously, Mohammad Moghimi, another lawyer for Nasrin Sotoudeh, had reported that his client was prohibited from receiving visitors due to 'improper hijab' and that the prosecutor's office had requested her to provide a 'written commitment.' Earlier, political activist Eisa Saharkhiz had reported that on Sunday, September 17, the children of Nasrin Sotoudeh were prevented from visiting her, and her daughter was 'threatened' to comply with hijab regulations. Nasrin Sotoudeh has been imprisoned since June 13, and her husband, Reza Khandan, was also arrested on the morning of September 4 after officers visited their home. On Sunday, Abuzar Nasrollahi, the defense lawyer for Arash Keykhosravi, reported that despite the temporary detention of his client being converted to bail, he remains in custody. He added, 'It has not been announced that they do not accept our bail, but they have said they will contact us later regarding the acceptance of bail; however, they have not accepted it from us up to this moment.' According to Mr. Nasrollahi, the family of Ghasem Shoaleh Saadi, another imprisoned lawyer, also visited the court, but their bail was not accepted either. Ghasem Shoaleh Saadi, along with Arash Keykhosravi and Masoud Javadiyeh, two other lawyers, were arrested on Saturday, August 18, in front of the parliament. Ghasem Shoaleh Saadi had announced in a video that he would appear in front of the parliament in protest against the supervisory oversight, inspired by Mohammad Mossadegh. In recent months, human rights observers and programs monitoring support for human rights defenders have expressed deep concern over the continued pressures against human rights lawyers.