Three Days Without News of Tomaj Salehi; Investigating Judge Refused to Review Torture Evidence

The lawyer of Tomaj Salehi, a protesting rapper, announced a lack of information about his client's status three days after his re-arrest, releasing documents that include a complaint about "abuse and torture" during his previous detention. Amir Raeisian noted on Saturday, December 2, that the investigating judge in Isfahan did not even allow Tomaj's family to see these documents. He emphasized on his X (formerly Twitter) account that "the issue of physical harm inflicted on Tomaj had been reported to the court until Tomaj recently made it public." The lawyer explained the reason for releasing the documents: "Three days after Tomaj's arrest, we have had no contact with him and are unaware of his location, and today the investigating judge in Isfahan did not even allow Tomaj's family to see the documents." Following Tomaj Salehi's re-arrest, the Mizan news agency, affiliated with the judiciary, labeled his statements about filing a complaint against some of those involved in his case as "false" and attributed his re-arrest to the accusation of "spreading falsehoods and disturbing public opinion." Tomaj Salehi, a government-critical singer, was violently re-arrested by "armed agents" less than two weeks after his release from prison on December 9 in the city of Babol. This action by the Iranian government has faced widespread criticism from human rights activists and social media users. Yi Wan Ri, a member of the German parliament and Tomaj Salehi's guardian, stated that the Iranian government's "fear" of this critical singer was the reason for his re-arrest and called for his release. Gohar Eshghi, the mother of Sattar Beheshti, a blogger killed in police custody, also criticized Tomaj Salehi's arrest in a message, stating that she would go to Tehran in mourning attire. Based on published reports, citizens have been demanding his release by putting up posters of this protesting singer in various parts of the city. Arash Sobhani: The mentioned accusations for the violent and repeated arrest of Tomaj Salehi are ridiculous. Tomaj Salehi after his release: I was tortured a lot, but I neither confessed nor cooperated. Tomaj Salehi's lawyer rejected the accusation of "spreading falsehoods" against his client; security news agency: Tomaj will be handed over to Isfahan prison on Friday. Tomaj Salehi was arrested by armed agents.