Secretary-General of the Union of the Nation Party Released on Bail

Hours after conflicting reports about the arrest of Ali Shakouri Rad, Secretary-General of the Union of the Nation Party of Iran, the Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Azar Mansouri, a member of the central council of this newly established party, stating that Mr. Shakouri Rad has been released on bail. Ali Shakouri Rad, who has a history of serving in the sixth parliament, visited the Evin Prosecutor's Office on Tuesday afternoon, September 9, 'to provide some explanations.' However, several Iranian news agencies reported, citing informed sources, that this senior reformist figure had been arrested, and the social media account of the newly established Union of the Nation Party confirmed that he did not return after visiting the Evin Prosecutor's Office. Meanwhile, only the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) quoted Gholamreza Ansari, another member of the central council of the Union of the Nation Party, denying the news of Mr. Shakouri Rad's arrest. Mr. Ansari called the reports regarding the arrest of Ali Shakouri Rad 'utterly false' and 'media hype,' emphasizing that Mr. Shakouri Rad had recently received his 'clean record' and has no past cases. These statements contradict the remarks of an informed source who, in an interview with IRNA, cited a 'previous case and insistence on past violations' as the reason for Ali Shakouri Rad's arrest. On the other hand, the Twitter account of the Union of the Nation Party of Iran stated that Mr. Shakouri Rad was released 'upon the order of higher authorities.' This tweet mentioned that 'the arrest of Shakouri Rad was caused by more radical forces, and with the arrival of more rational forces, the order for his release was issued.' In a report related to Mr. Shakouri Rad's release, IRNA quoted Azar Mansouri, a member of the central council of the Union of the Nation Party of Iran, stating that 'after a call from the Tehran Prosecutor's Office to Ali Shakouri Rad's family regarding the provision of bail, his family took the necessary steps to secure his release.' IRNA noted that Mr. Shakouri Rad had been summoned to the prosecutor's office regarding a 'travel ban.' The summons and several hours of detention of Mr. Shakouri Rad occurred while the Secretary-General of the Union of the Nation Party of Iran was present at the first press conference of this newly established party on Tuesday morning. Mr. Shakouri Rad, who was a senior member of the Islamic Participation Front, was previously arrested in October 2010 on charges of 'security crimes' related to the controversial presidential election of 2009 but was released from prison after a month. Meanwhile, the establishment of the Union of the Nation Party of Islamic Iran has not been well received by conservatives, as most founding members of this newly established party are former members of the Participation Front, a reformist party that was dissolved by judicial authorities following the 2009 presidential election. In one of these reactions, Sadegh Larijani, the head of the judiciary, stated that 'some individuals who were agitators during the 2009 unrest and some of whom are convicted have now come to change their appearance and form parties to re-enter the scene.' These remarks came shortly after the first congress of the Union of the Nation Party was held. Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Interior stated on Tuesday that the activity permit for the 'Union of the Nation of Islamic Iran' has not yet been issued, and if the inquiries regarding some members of the central council are negative, its composition must be revised. Hossein Ali Amiri also implicitly confirmed that the establishment permit for this party was issued by the Article 10 Commission of Political Parties, 'but the issuance of this permit is a necessary condition for forming a party, and a sufficient condition is the issuance of an activity permit by the Minister of Interior.' In this context, conflicting reports about the arrest of the Secretary-General of the Union of the Nation Party of Iran have emerged, and the Iranian Ministry of Interior stated that the activity permit for the Union of the Nation has not yet been issued.