New Charges Filed Against Fatemeh Sepahri and Her Brothers: Insulting Khamenei and Khomeini

A family member of the Sepahri family reports that the judge of the fifth branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Mashhad has sent the case of Fatemeh Sepahri, Mohammad Hossein Sepahri, and Hossein Sepahri to the case investigator to add the charge of 'insulting Khamenei and Khomeini' to their case. Asghar Sepahri, whose sister and brother Fatemeh and Mohammad Hossein are in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, and another brother, Hossein, has an open case and is out on bail, wrote on social media on Tuesday, June 8, about the latest status of the case of these three individuals: 'Yazdankhah, the judge of Branch 5 of the Revolutionary Court in Mashhad, after the court session on May 17, has sent the case of Fatemeh Sepahri, Mohammad Hossein Sepahri, and Hossein Sepahri to Ali Soleimani Marshak, the case investigator, to add the charge of insulting Khamenei and Khomeini to their case.' He also reminded that Fatemeh Sepahri has been in prison for over 20 months and her phone is heavily monitored, and Mohammad Hossein Sepahri has been imprisoned in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad for over eight months. Hossein and Mohammad Hossein Sepahri were arrested on October 6 of last year, a day before Fatemeh Sepahri's open-heart surgery at Ghaem Hospital in Mashhad, while they were 'following up on her treatment.' The judiciary's efforts to increase the charges against the three members of the Sepahri family come at a time when a new case has already been opened against Fatemeh Sepahri related to 'condemning the terrorist attack by Hamas.' The continuation of Fatemeh Sepahri's imprisonment, a political prisoner opposing the Islamic Republic, in the substandard conditions of Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad, occurs while she was 'immediately returned to prison after undergoing open-heart surgery' and 'should have been under strict and special care at home or in the hospital for months.' Additionally, Mohammad Hossein Sepahri, a political prisoner and a signatory of the '14 Statement' for the transition from the Islamic Republic and the resignation of its leader Ali Khamenei, previously stated in a phone call from Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad that his dismissal from the Ministry of Education has been confirmed. A citizen from Boukan was sentenced to prison for 'supporting Israel' and 'insulting the leadership.' Ali Aghil, a political activist, was transferred to Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad to serve a five-year sentence. Families of French citizens imprisoned in Iran have sought help from the United Nations. Exclusive to VOA: An opposition figure who was injured by government supporters says he will continue the struggle. Human rights sources reported an increase in pressure by the IRGC on four prisoners in the 'Ekbatane neighborhood' case for forced confessions.