New Charges Against Manouchehr Bakhtiari; Revolutionary Court Sentences Father of Pouya to 18 Years in Prison and Flogging

Following the legal actions taken by the authorities of the Islamic Republic against Manouchehr Bakhtiari in prison, the Revolutionary Court of Karaj sentenced the father of the bereaved Pouya Bakhtiari to "18 years in prison and 74 lashes." The news agency of the Human Rights Activists in Iran, HRANA, reported on Tuesday, January 9, that the ruling issued by the first branch of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj, presided over by "Mousa Asf-al-Hosseini," was communicated to Manouchehr Bakhtiari on Tuesday. Sara Abbasi, Manouchehr Bakhtiari's wife, told HRANA that on Tuesday this bereaved prisoner "contacted her after eight days" and "informed her about the notification of his sentence in prison." Manouchehr Bakhtiari, who is in Chubin Dar prison in Qazvin, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the charges of "conspiracy and collusion" and "forming and managing a group in cyberspace with the aim of disrupting national security," and for the charge of "spreading falsehoods," he was sentenced to one year in prison and 74 lashes. The first branch of the Revolutionary Court of Karaj also sentenced Manouchehr Bakhtiari to two years in prison for the charge of "propaganda against the regime and disturbing public opinion," and five years for the charge of "collaborating with opposition groups." The hearing regarding the charges against the father of the bereaved Pouya Bakhtiari was held on December 24 in prison via video conference with the first branch of the Revolutionary Court. Previously, Manouchehr Bakhtiari warned in an audio file from Chubin Dar prison in Qazvin that the Islamic Republic is seeking to kill him in prison. His wife had previously told HRANA that this bereaved father had suffered from "toothache, eye and ear infection" in prison for four months and due to the authorities' refusal to take him to a medical center, he was forced to "extract all the upper row of his teeth due to nerve pain" just to alleviate the pain. Following the killing of Pouya Bakhtiari during the crackdown on nationwide protests in November 2019, his father, Manouchehr Bakhtiari, who was pursuing justice for him, was arrested. Most recently, Manouchehr Bakhtiari was arrested on April 28, 2021, and the Revolutionary Court sentenced him to three and a half years in prison, two and a half years of exile, and a two-year travel ban. The father of the bereaved Pouya Bakhtiari was transferred from Karaj Central Prison to Chubin Dar prison in Qazvin in July 2022, and since then several cases with various charges have been opened against him. Among them, while serving his sentence, a case was opened against Manouchehr Bakhtiari for "insulting the leader," and the first branch of the Revolutionary Court of Qazvin sentenced him to six months in prison. Additionally, another case has been opened against this bereaved prisoner in the 114th branch of the Criminal Court of Karaj, with the hearing for that case held via video conference on November 20. In addition to him, Nahid Shirpich, the mother of the bereaved Pouya Bakhtiari, is also in Zanjan prison. Pouran Nazemi had previously referred to Nahid Shirpich as "the representative of the large family of seekers of justice in Iran" in an interview with Voice of America. The pressure from the authorities of the Islamic Republic on the family of Pouya Bakhtiari has not been limited to his father and mother; in recent weeks, the Revolutionary Court has also auctioned the house of Saba Bakhtiari, Pouya's aunt, which is held as collateral by the judiciary. Furthermore, the lawyer for Fatemeh Sepahri stated that her client has developed "multiple illnesses." Pouran Nazemi noted that the government has increased pressure by cutting off the "economic lifeline of activists." Nearly 100 years of imprisonment and other punishments have been imposed on eleven constitutionalist political activists. Over 45 years of imprisonment have been confirmed for three political activists in the appeals court; a source informed that they have committed no crime. Khalid Pirzadeh has been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison; a source informed that he continues to use "anti-seizure pills."