One-Year Prison Sentence and Travel Ban for Shahnaz Akmali Issued by Revolutionary Court

Shahnaz Akmali, the mother of Mostafa Karim-Bigi, one of the victims of the 2009 protests in Iran, has been sentenced to "one year of imprisonment and prohibition from any membership in social media and political groups" by the Islamic Revolutionary Court. Radio Farda news sources have also reported that Ms. Akmali has been banned from leaving the country. The Iran Human Rights Organization has stated that this ruling was issued by Judge Ahmadzadeh, the head of Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court. According to this report, her charge is "propaganda activities against the regime." Judicial officials have not yet commented on the news of Ms. Akmali's conviction. Shahnaz Akmali was tried on October 15 of this year in the mentioned branch and was informed of her charges in July of this year at Branch 2 of Evin Prosecutor's Office. She was arrested in February 2017 and after 24 days of imprisonment in Ward 209 of Evin Prison, she was temporarily released on bail of 100 million tomans until the court date. Mostafa Karim-Bigi, Ms. Akmali's son, was shot in the head by security forces during the Ashura protests of 2009 in Tehran and died. His family claims that his body was autopsied and a bullet wound was visible on his forehead. The 2009 protests began in response to the announcement of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's victory in the presidential election. Despite residing in Tehran, security forces did not allow his burial in the city, and the Karim-Bigi family was forced to bury him in the village of Jouqin in Shahriar, Tehran. In recent years, Ms. Akmali has faced pressure from security officials due to holding memorial ceremonies for her son's death and her statements regarding political prisoners. Following her arrest last year, Parvin Fahimi, the mother of Sohrab A'rabi, another victim of the post-election events of 2009, called for her release. In a letter published on the Kaleme website, close to Mir Hossein Mousavi, one of the leaders of the 2009 protests, Ms. A'rabi wrote, "We are still mourning our martyr children seven years after the events following the 2009 presidential election" and "Do not reopen the wounds of our young ones more than the injustice already inflicted upon us." She described Shahnaz Akmali's arrest as a "violation" of citizen rights and stated, "Do not further neglect the families affected by the events of 2009."