On 7 November 2023 woman human rights defender Nasrin Sotoudeh’s request for bail was rejected by the prosecutor at Branch 29 of Tehran Revolutionary Court. The woman human rights defender, who was detained after attending the funeral of Armita Geravand, was arrested together with 23 other women, including journalists and civil society actors, most of whom have been granted bail.
Nasrin Sotoudeh is a prominent human rights lawyer, who has dedicated her legal career to representing opposition activists, women’s rights activists, young prisoners who were sentenced to death for crimes committed when they were minors, and women who peacefully protested against the country’s obligatory veiling rules.
On 7 November 2023, the request of Nasrin Sotoudeh to be released on bail was rejected by the prosecutor at Branch 29 of Tehran Revolutionary Court. The woman human rights defender was arrested on 29 October 2023 together with 23 other women, including journalists and civil society actors, in Tehran. During her arrest, the woman human rights defender was beaten by police, who used taser batons on the lawyer. Her prescription glasses were broken and she was held in a police van for seven hours, banned from entering the prosecutor’s office on the pretext of not having worn a head scarf. She was issued with two arbitrary charges of “disturbing the public order” and “disobeying police order.” The woman human rights defender was subsequently transferred to Qrachak prison where she has been held since.
While the initial charges brought against the woman human rights defender in the police van comprised of “disturbing the public order” and “disobeying police order,” on account of her attendance at the funeral of Armita Geravand, her lawyer has since announced that two other charges of “gathering and colluding against the national security” and “propaganda activities against state” have also been arbitrarily levelled against the woman human rights defender by Branch 29 of Tehran Revolutionary Court, amounting to an utter violation of due process.
Additionally, on 5 November 2023, while in detention in Qarchak prison, the woman human rights defender received a summons from Branch 1097 of Ershad Judicial Complex, the criminal department II, to present herself on 4 December 2023. Although it is still not clear what the charges brought against her by this criminal court are, there is speculation that this might pertain to her disobedience in refusing to wear her obligatory hijab during the funeral of Armita Geravand.
While serving her ten-year prison sentence, the woman human rights defender was granted a number of medical furloughs in 2021. The latest of these commenced on 21 July 2021 and was subsequently renewed two further times, causing her sentence to be suspended from November 2021 for however long this medical condition may persist.
Sources & Social Media
Iran: Nasrin Sotoudeh’s request for bail rejected following national security charges
