Nasrin Sotoudeh: I Have Been Threatened with Death, Acid Attacks, and Mutilation

Nasrin Sotoudeh, an Iranian lawyer and human rights activist, says she has been "repeatedly" threatened with "acid attacks, death, and mutilation" in recent months. In an interview with the Iran Human Rights Campaign website published on Friday, August 30, she stated, "Since the beginning of my sit-in in front of the Bar Association's office, I have been threatened multiple times. Once, a motorcyclist threatened me with execution. During my sit-in, intelligence agents detained me and my husband three times. On those days, I also received a phone call from someone who introduced himself as an intelligence officer and asked me to refrain from interviewing foreign media." Sotoudeh emphasized that she did not accept this request. She also mentioned, "In the past two months, I have received threatening text messages repeatedly, where the sender, presenting vague demands, stated that if I do not comply, it would lead to acid attacks, mutilation, and my death. These were the problems I faced during this time." She also announced her renewed summons to Evin Prosecutor's Office. Nasrin Sotoudeh was arrested on September 4, 2010, and was sentenced to 11 years in prison, 20 years of disqualification from practicing law, and a 20-year exit ban for charges of acting against national security, propaganda against the regime, and membership in the Human Rights Defenders Center. This sentence was reduced to 6 years in prison and 10 years of disqualification from practicing law in the appeals court. After nearly three years in prison and serving more than half of her sentence, she was released from Evin Prison on September 18, 2013, by order of judicial authorities. Following her release, her law license was revoked for three years by the Disciplinary Court of Lawyers in October 2014. In protest against the disqualification ruling, she began a sit-in in front of the Tehran Bar Association on October 20, 2014. During this sit-in, which continued almost daily, she and her husband were detained several times by intelligence agents for hours. Finally, on June 27, 2015, the Disciplinary Court of Lawyers reduced her suspension from three years to nine months. After this change, Nasrin Sotoudeh ended her daily sit-in that had lasted for nine months in front of the Bar Association building.