“Dorothea Deppermann”: I Will Take on the Guardianship of Mahdi (Yaser) Akbari, a Christian Citizen

“Dorothea Deppermann” announced that she will take on the guardianship of Mahdi (Yaser) Akbari, a Christian citizen.

Yaser Akbari, a Christian citizen, was arrested by security forces in February 2019 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison in September 2020 on charges of “acting against national security by establishing a house church.” While he was serving time in prison, his son “Amir Ali,” who was struggling with congenital cerebral palsy affecting his hands, was hospitalized and passed away in the hospital in December 2021.

Mr. Akbari spoke about his interrogations, saying: “The trial was hundreds of times worse than the initial investigation and interrogation. They considered Christianity a deviant sect and addressed me as its follower. The judge in the case was so thoughtlessly expanding charges against me that he even forgot that Jews and Christians are followers of two separate religions. He declared me a follower of the deviant Christian religion and a Jew affiliated with Israel. A farce that is laughable instead of being a court ruling.”

Yaser Akbari published a letter from Evin Prison in June 2023, writing about his conditions in prison and the authorities’ prevention of his attendance at his son’s funeral ceremony. Mansour Borji, director of the “Article 18” organization, while confirming the letter, stated: “Yaser Akbari had a son who needed constant care, and since he was in prison, the responsibility for this fell on the family or a rehabilitation organization. However, this 18-year-old boy faced serious problems at one point, but his father could not find permission to be released from prison to care for his son. He had only 20 minutes of visitation time and went to the hospital with a guard, handcuffed and in prison clothes to see his 18-year-old son for the last time. Amir Ali passed away a few days after seeing his father, and Yaser Akbari was not even allowed to attend his son’s funeral ceremony.”

Yaser Akbari wrote in his letter: “This is Iran, the 21st century, and I am a prisoner in the hands of the enemies of my land.”

Ms. “Dorothea Deppermann,” representative of the German Green Party in the Hamburg state parliament, took on the political guardianship of this Christian citizen yesterday, Monday, April 15. By posting on social media, she stated: “By taking on the guardianship of Mahdi (Yaser) Akbari, I strongly advocate for his freedom and the end of systematic oppression by Iran’s tyrannical regime. This support is not only a symbol of personal support for Mahdi, but also a renewed call for a broader struggle against human rights violations in Iran. We need to increase awareness, increase pressure from the international community, and mobilize necessary support to ensure justice for Mahdi and many other individuals suffering in similar circumstances.”