Noor Ali Tabandeh Appoints Representatives for Negotiations on the Situation of Dervishes

Noor Ali Tabandeh, the leader of the Gonabadi dervishes, in a statement released on Thursday, March 8, condemned what he described as "the burning of some mosques and husseiniyahs" and introduced five individuals for negotiations with responsible authorities regarding the situation of the dervishes. In this statement, which was reflected in media related to the Gonabadi dervishes, including the Telegram channel of the Sultan's Shrine, Alireza Jazbi, Hossein Ali Kashani, Mohammad Tabandeh, Gholamreza Harsini, and Miryounes Jafari were introduced as Mr. Tabandeh's five representatives for negotiations with officials. Mr. Tabandeh also stated that "some individuals, incited by recent events, have resorted to burning mosques and husseiniyahs," adding that the Gonabadi dervishes condemn these actions and "disavow" them. He further noted that "websites such as Reistar and Majzoban Noor" have no connection to the Gonabadi dervishes, and his views are communicated through his advisors and the "Sultan's Shrine" website. Previously, the Majzoban Noor website announced that it operates as an independent news site and its content "does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the elders of the Gonabadi Nematollahi order." The leader of the Gonabadi dervishes had previously advised his followers to "remain calm" following the clashes on Pasdaran Street and announced that religious ceremonies of the dervishes at his home had been temporarily canceled. On March 6, Noor Ali Tabandeh also implicitly mentioned his "house arrest" and expressed hope that the restrictions imposed on him and other members of this group would be lifted by the time of Nowruz (Persian New Year). The protest gathering of the Gonabadi dervishes around Noor Ali Tabandeh's house on February 19 escalated into violence with the intervention of security forces and motorcyclist plainclothes agents. Following this violence, which led to the arrest of hundreds of dervishes, images and videos of several detainees who had been severely "beaten" were released. Active members of this group on social media have also reported multiple cases of "head, jaw, and dental fractures" and poor physical conditions of some detainees before and during their transfer to detention centers. Meanwhile, the Majzoban Noor website reported that 10 detained Gonabadi dervishes had been transferred from Fashafouyeh prison to another location for interrogation, and no information is available about their status. According to this report, Amin Safari, Mostafa Safari, Hadi Dehnavi, Kasra Noori, Faramarz Mangari, Saleh al-Din Moradi, Reza Entesari, Mohammad Karimi, Kianoush Abbaszadeh, Mostafa Abdi, and Mohammad Sharifi-Moghadam were moved to an unspecified location last week, and no information is available about their status. Mohammad Raji, a detained Gonabadi dervish, also died in custody, and his body was buried on the evening of this past Tuesday, attended by a small number of family members and law enforcement in Aligoodarz County. While the Majzoban Noor website reported that this Gonabadi dervish died during "interrogation," judicial authorities denied that Mr. Raji was killed in police custody, claiming he died during clashes in the street. Judicial officials have emphasized the need for "swift and expedited punishment" for the detained Gonabadi dervishes involved in the clashes on Pasdaran Street, and the commander of Tehran's police announced that the driver of a bus, who allegedly ran over three police officers leading to their deaths, would be executed before the end of the year. Previously, 87 political and civil activists issued a statement emphasizing that the news about the "immediate and expedited trial" of the detained dervishes "preemptively undermines the principle of independence and impartiality of the court." The emphasis by the Islamic Republic officials on punishing the detained Gonabadi dervishes comes as the protest gathering of the Gonabadi dervishes around Noor Ali Tabandeh's house on February 19 escalated into violence with the intervention of security forces and motorcyclist plainclothes agents. Earlier, the Human Rights Defenders Center, chaired by Shirin Ebadi, reported in its February report on human rights violations in Iran that "the presence and intervention of Basij forces at the scene of the incident is the source of many unfortunate events in street protests." The Gonabadi dervishes' gathering on February 19 initially began in front of the 102nd police station in northern Tehran in protest against the arrest of a dervish named Nematollah Riahi. About two weeks prior, the Gonabadi dervishes had gathered after reports emerged about the establishment of a checkpoint near Noor Ali Tabandeh's house, which also turned violent with the intervention of security agents. The government's actions against this group intensified in 2005, when widespread destruction of Gonabadi dervish husseiniyahs began in various cities in Iran, followed by the arrest of many dervishes. The Human Rights Defenders Center wrote in an open letter to the UN Secretary-General in 2014 that Gonabadi dervishes have faced "continuous harassment such as imprisonment, deprivation of social rights, threats..." for over 15 years.