Release of an Environmental Activist; Disagreement Over 'Espionage' Charges

Simultaneously with the release of one of the environmental activists, a member of parliament referred to the disagreement between the Ministry of Intelligence and the IRGC Intelligence Organization regarding the 'espionage' charges against detained environmental activists, calling for Hassan Rouhani, the head of the Supreme National Security Council, to intervene in this case. According to reports, on Saturday, May 11, Alireza Farahzadeh, an environmental activist, was released after 80 days of detention. Mr. Farahzadeh, a wildlife and environmental documentary filmmaker, was arrested on February 26, 2018, in Bandar Abbas. Several environmental activists were arrested in January of the previous year, and the arrests of environmental activists continued in various provinces of Iran, bringing the total number of detainees to 55. The continued detention of environmental activists comes despite statements from several members of parliament, including Mahmoud Sadqi and Mohammad Reza Tabesh, indicating that anti-espionage experts from the Ministry of Intelligence 'explicitly, logically, and documentarily announced that they found no evidence of espionage' against them. Meanwhile, the newspaper Shargh reported on Saturday that experts from the Ministry of Intelligence stated in the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the parliament last Tuesday that the detained environmental activists 'are not spies.' According to this report, they announced that these activists 'were at least 60 kilometers away from locations monitored by military institutions' and that their filming equipment could not have captured images from those locations. However, Mahmoud Sadqi, a representative from Tehran, stated that officials in the IRGC Intelligence Organization believe that the detained activists 'unwittingly used information that was ultimately exploited' by Western intelligence agencies. Hassan Firouzabadi, a senior military advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, also stated last year regarding the detained environmental activists: 'Many Iranians who are spies and many foreign spies operating in Iran do not even know that they are spying.' He claimed that in a previous case, a lizard 'that can absorb atomic waves' was used to identify Iran's nuclear activities. Meanwhile, Gholamreza Heydari, a representative from Tehran in parliament, referred to the disagreement between these two intelligence organizations regarding this case and called for Hassan Rouhani, as the head of the Supreme National Security Council, to intervene. Following the death of Kavous Seyed Emami and several detainees from the protests in January in prison, Hassan Rouhani established a four-member committee from government members to 'investigate and follow up on unpleasant incidents in some detention centers.' However, no report has been published regarding the actions of this committee so far. Kavous Seyed Emami, one of the detained environmental activists, died in Evin Prison on February 8, 2018. Judiciary officials announced that the cause of death of this university professor was 'suicide,' but they have not answered the question of what conditions led him to commit suicide before going to court and receiving a conviction. Payam Darvishan, the lawyer for Kavous Seyed Emami's family, also reported that the initial forensic report indicated 'the extent of bruises on various parts of the body' and 'injection marks on the body,' but the 'exact cause' of Mr. Seyed Emami's death has not been announced. The detention of environmental activists also led to the departure of Kaveh Madani, the deputy of Iran's Environmental Organization, from the country, and in his resignation letter, he stated that upon entering Iran, without a judicial order, 'all his personal hardware and social media accounts' were 'looted' by 'vigilantes' of the Islamic Republic. In this context, Sadqi: The Ministry of Intelligence found no reason for the 'espionage' of environmental activists. The continuation of the detention of environmental activists and their lack of access to lawyers. Isa Kalantari's ignorance about the fate of detained environmental activists. Changing the playing field of 'proxy wars'; the war against the people in the streets of Iran. The crisis in Iran; the responsibility of opponents and the possibility of radicalizing Iranian society. The death of the last Mossad representative in Tehran amid the Iranian crisis. Internet shutdown in Iran has exceeded 300 hours; reports of 'evidence' of the killing of injured patients under treatment. Testimonies from three witnesses about the situation in Isfahan province; 'like war-torn areas.' The death of the last Mossad representative in Tehran amid the Iranian crisis. Trump emphasizes 'stopping executions in Iran': we do not know what will happen in the future. Trump announced an agreement to hold a meeting about Greenland in Davos.