Fatemeh Karroubi: The Irresponsibility of the Enforcers of House Arrest Has Increased During Rouhani's Era

Fatemeh Karroubi, the wife of Mehdi Karroubi, has severely criticized the performance of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence regarding the house arrest of two candidates from the 2009 elections in a letter to the Minister of Intelligence. She stated that under Hassan Rouhani's government, the 'irresponsibility' of those enforcing the house arrest has increased. In a part of her letter published on Sunday, May 2, she described the Ministry of Intelligence as 'passive and irresponsible' and addressed Mahmoud Alavi, saying: 'During the tenure of the previous minister, there was a liaison who could at least make decisions on minor issues or announce the decisions of their decision-making authorities, but currently, due to the passivity or irresponsibility of the Ministry of Intelligence, there is neither an effective liaison at the house arrest location nor a way to resolve the most basic issues.' Fatemeh Karroubi further questioned Alavi, asking, 'Can we expect the criteria of the previous Minister of Intelligence to be applied after 21 months since your appointment?' In another part of her letter, she pointed out that they have been in the fifth year of illegal house arrest, which has been enforced by the Ministry of Intelligence from the beginning. She emphasized that the change of government did not result in any change in the enforcement of the house arrest, but rather, there has been more irresponsibility from the enforcers. She also noted that the lack of legal and executive criteria characterizes this house arrest, stating that the detainees' access to basic rights has always depended on the decisions of individuals referred to by security agents as 'high officials,' unknown officials who still need to decide on the most minor issues after five years. In conclusion, she mentioned that whenever they protest this process, the security agents present at home, who are actually decent individuals, absolve themselves by saying, 'High officials must decide.' One of the demands of supporters from Hassan Rouhani in the 2013 elections, as well as one of his electoral promises, was to lift the house arrest of Mehdi Karroubi, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard. Mehdi Karroubi has repeatedly called for a resolution to his situation and has demanded either the lifting of the house arrest or a public trial. Previously, on the fourth anniversary of his father's house arrest, Mehdi Karroubi's children criticized Hassan Rouhani, accusing him of not adhering to his electoral promises to lift the house arrest. In this context, in January of last year, Mohammad Hossein Karroubi, Mehdi Karroubi's son, stated in an interview with the Times of London that Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, is making no effort to lift the house arrest of Mehdi Karroubi, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Zahra Rahnavard.