Arash Sadeghi released from prison
On 1 May 2021, Arash Sadeghi was released from Rajaie Shahr prison in Alborz province in accordance with Article 12 of the law reducing prison sentences for political prisoners, ratified by the Iranian Parliament in May 2020.
On 24 August 2020, Arash Sadeghi’s doctor informed him that he should recommence his radiotherapy treatment.
18 August 2020: Arash Sadeghi has decided to postpone his medical check-ups for cancer, as a result of the inefficient and ineffective response to COVID-19 by the authorities in Rajaee Shahr prison.
23 August 2019: Gohardash prison administration is denying human rights defender Arash Sadeghi hospitalization, despite his worsening health condition. The human rights defender was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, which caused the loss of movement of his right arm, and he is in urgent need of receiving proper medical treatment in a hospital outside the prison. However, the prison administration has been postponing his transfer since June 2019.
On 22 July 2018, Arash Sadeghi was denied necessary medical attention when the authorisation for his transfer to see a specialist in a cancer treatment hospital was deliberately delayed by prison authorities. The human rights defender, who has been diagnosed with a rare bone tumor and is at risk of developing cancer, resultantly missed his appointment. He remains detained in Gohardasht Prison.
On 7 June 2016, human rights defender Mr Arash Sadeghi was arrested by Verdict Execution officers after the Appeals Court of Tehran upheld the nineteen year prison sentence against him over charges including “insulting the Founder of the Islamic Republic”. He is currently detained in Ward 8 of Evin prison.
Arash Sadeghi is an Iranian student rights activist and human rights defender working on the documentation of human rights violations inside Iranian prisons. He has extensively reported on abuses and poor prison conditions, as well as violations committed by the authorities including torture, ill treatment, lack of visitation rights and access to a lawyer, and lack of medical treatment for prisoners. Arash was also involved in several campaigns and gatherings protesting against the unlawful detention of human rights defender Narges Mohammadi and against the execution of human rights defender Gholamreza Khosravi.
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- 10 May 2021 : Arash Sadeghi released from prison
- 26 August 2020 : Arash Sadeghi to resume medical treatment
- 18 August 2020 : Arash Sadeghi to no longer attend cancer check-ups in light of COVID-19 response in prison
- 23 August 2019 : Arash Sadeghi denied hospitalization by Gohardash prison
- 14 June 2016 : Arrest and imprisonment of human rights defender Arash Sadeghi
On 1 May 2021, Arash Sadeghi was released from Rajaie Shahr prison in Alborz province in accordance with Article 12 of the law reducing prison sentences for political prisoners, ratified by the Iranian Parliament in May 2020.
The human rights defender had been sentenced on a number of charges in two separate cases to 15 years’ and four years’ imprisonment to run concurrently. Following the application of Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, which provides that only the most severe single sentence is executable, Arash Sadeghi was ordered to serve seven years and six months on the charge of “forming a group with the purpose of disrupting national security,” "insulting the supreme leader" and "insulting the sacred principles of Islam".
Arash Sadeghi was deemed eligible for the application of Article 12 of the new law on reducing the prison sentences of political prisoners, as he had already served five and a half years of his sentence.
On 24 August 2020, Arash Sadeghi’s doctor informed him that he should recommence his radiotherapy treatment. The defender has been suffering from Chondrosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, since 2018, when he was diagnosed whilst serving his 19 year sentence (of which 11 years and 6 month is exuctable according to Article 134 Islamic Penal Code, however, it is not yet clear if this article will be implemented) in Rajaee Shahr prison. Arash Sadeghi was informed by his doctor in November 2019 that the cancer, which was initially found in his right arm, had metastasised to his shoulder and the bones above his chest.
This radiotherapy treatment was prescribed to take place in April 2020, however has been postponed on the doctor’s advice due to COVID-19. The defender began radiotherapy treatment on 22 December 2019, 35 days after the doctor had advised, as a result of the Prosecutor’s Office failure to cooperate. The treatment was successful according to Arash Sadeghi’s doctor, as scans showed the temporary halt of the metastasis of the cancer.
The negligence of the prison authorities in Iran, by denying Arash Sadeghi adequate medical treatment, preventing him from recovering from treatment in hospital, and delaying his medical treatment, have led to the deterioration of the human rights defender’s health condition, despite the initial successful treatment.
Arash Sadeghi has decided to postpone his medical check-ups for cancer, as a result of the inefficient and ineffective response to COVID-19 by the authorities in Rajaee Shahr prison. He has been denied temporary release from prison despite his critical health condition which requires urgent medical attention.
During the pandemic, he has also been denied access to speak on the phone to his wife Golrokh Iraee, a woman human rights defender detained in Qarchak prison.
Gohardash prison administration is denying human rights defender Arash Sadeghi hospitalization, despite his worsening health condition. The human rights defender was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, which caused the loss of movement of his right arm, and he is in urgent need of receiving proper medical treatment in a hospital outside the prison. However, the prison administration has been postponing his transfer since June 2019.
On 7 June 2016, human rights defender Mr Arash Sadeghi was arrested by Verdict Execution officers after the Appeals Court of Tehran upheld the nineteen year prison sentence against him over charges including “insulting the Founder of the Islamic Republic”. He is currently detained in Ward 8 of Evin prison.
Arash Sadeghi is an Iranian student rights activist and human rights defender working on the documentation of human rights violations inside Iranian prisons. He has extensively reported on abuses and poor prison conditions, as well as violations committed by the authorities including torture, ill treatment, lack of visitation rights and access to a lawyer, and lack of medical treatment for prisoners. Arash Sadeghi was also involved in several campaigns and gatherings protesting against the unlawful detention of human rights defender Narges Mohammadi and against the execution of human rights defender Gholamreza Khosravi.
On 7 June 2016, Verdict Execution officers of Tehran arrested Arash Sadeghi on an order by Branch 54 of Tehran Appeals Court to uphold the decision of a nineteen year prison sentence. He was on his way to Shahid Moghadasi Court at Evin Prison to follow up on his sentencing status when he was arrested. The human rights defender was charged with “insulting the Founder of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Khomeini” due to social media posts reporting on historical events during the 1980's in Iran, “disseminating false news and rumours”, “gathering and colluding against the state” and “propaganda against the system”. He was sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment by Branch 15 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court with the addition of a previous four year suspended sentence. He was denied access to a lawyer while on trial. Arash Sadeghi was directly transferred to Evin prison, Tehran where he is currently detained, and where prisoners are reported to be exposed to extreme ill treatment and abuses.
On 6 September 2014, Arash Sadeghi was rearrested and detained on the above-mentioned charges, in the Intelligence Organisation-controlled Ward 2-A of Evin Prison. He was later released on seven billion Iranian rials (approximately US$230,000) bail, seven months later on 14 March 2015. The hearing sessions at Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court occurred in May and July 2015, and verdicts were upheld by the Appeals Court on 22 February 2016. Reports have shown that he had been subjected to torture and suffered a broken rib and shoulder.
Earlier on 5 December 2009, the human rights defender was arrested near Allameh University in Tehran and received his first sentence in June 2010 over charges of “gathering and colluding against the state and propaganda against the system”. In total, he was sentenced to 6 years imprisonment and 74 lashes by Branch 26 of Tehran's Revolutionary Court which on appeal was reduced to one years imprisonment and four years suspended. In spite of this, he was kept in solitary confinement for eighteen months in Evin prison until 12 October 2013, when he was released.
Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned about the confirmation of the sentence and the imprisonment of human rights defender Arash Sadeghi, as it believes that his sentencing is solely motivated by his legitimate and peaceful work in the defence of human rights.
Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in the Islamic Republic of Iran to:
1. Immediately and unconditionally release human rights defender Arash Sadeghi and quash the sentence against him;
2. Ensure implementation of the provisions in Article 134 of the 2013 Islamic Penal code, which limits a prison term to the heaviest sentence of the most serious charge in cases of multiple charges, and which would reduce his current prison sentence;
3. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in the Islamic Republic of Iran are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.
