Soleymane Mortazavi, Mayor of Mashhad, Receives Suspension from Public Service

The Prosecutor of the Court of Audit of the country announced the issuance of a suspension order for Soleymane Mortazavi, the Mayor of Mashhad, stating that the execution of this order has been halted due to the defendant's request for retrial. On Tuesday, June 30, Fayyaz Shojaei noted that this order was based on Article 2 of the Court of Audit Law, stating: "The Mashhad municipality has not allowed auditors to conduct an audit regarding its financial performance and has declared that the Court of Audit is not competent in this matter." According to Mr. Shojaei, based on the law, if anyone obstructs the proceedings of the experts and auditors of the Court of Audit, this act is considered a violation, and the Court of Audit can impose penalties on the violators, which can range from a written reprimand to suspension from public service. Soleymane Mortazavi, the Mayor of Mashhad and head of the election headquarters for Ebrahim Raisi in this year's presidential elections, denied this news in an interview with the Tasnim news agency, stating: "The news of my suspension is not true, and unfortunately, some have spread falsehoods in cyberspace and published confidential documents from the Court of Audit." Mr. Mortazavi also emphasized that "I reserve the right to sue those who have spread falsehoods." Nevertheless, the Mayor of Mashhad stated that they have "notified the provincial Court of Audit of the city council's resolution prohibiting the Court of Audit from entering matters outside of Article 55 of the Constitution." He also mentioned that a ruling has been issued against him by the Court of Audit, which he has contested. Soleymane Mortazavi has previously held positions such as the Director General of Security Measures at the Prisons Organization, Director General of Administrative and Financial Affairs at the Prisons Organization, and Deputy Minister of Interior in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government.