After waiting on death row for seven years, the execution sentencing of Mehdi Esmaili, 26, who committed murder at the age of 19, was finally enforced.

During the current calendar year, the Islamic Republic judiciary has carried out 562 executions of those convicted of committing murder, Continue reading »

 Madeline Nazanin, the wife of Wilson Eisavi, a priest of the Pentecostal Assyrian church in the city of Kermanshah who was detained close to a month ago and is still being held in detention, said that her husband is being tortured.

Intelligence agents arrested the priest on February 2 while he was visiting a friend in the city of Shahin Shahr in Isfehan province.  The priest is currently being held in detention center in the vicinity of Isfehan. Continue reading »

Following the arrests of civil rights and press activists, Behzad Mehrani, a blogger and a human rights activist, was detained in the street in the morning hours of March 3.

Intelligence agents escorted Mr. Mehrani to his residence, which was searched.  Mr. Mehrani was taken to an undisclosed location.  Intelligence agents confiscated a number of CDs and books.  Continue reading »

The death sentencing of Mohammad-Amin Valian, an ex-ecutive member of the Islamic Society in Damghan University, was confirmed.  In the case against the 20 year-old student, religious references are made to an edict debated by Ayatullah Makarem Shirazi in reference to dishonoring the Ashura religious festival, and statements made in this regard, have been construed as a religious decree, according to which a death sentencing was issued by the lower court and approved by the appeals court. Continue reading »