Continued Suppression of Civil Activists in Iran; Salar Taher Afshar, Azerbaijani Activist, Sentenced to Four Years in Prison
Salar Taher Afshar, an Azerbaijani (Turkic) activist and resident of Urmia, has been sentenced to four years in prison by the Revolutionary Court.
An informed source, who requested anonymity for security reasons, told Voice of America that Mr. Taher Afshar has been sentenced to a total of four years in prison by Branch Two of the Urmia Revolutionary Court, headed by Judge Sheikhloo, on charges of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic of Iran” and “attempting to organize illegal gatherings.”
According to this source, the hearing in this case was held on the 24th of Azar in the Revolutionary Court with the presence of this Azerbaijani activist and his defense lawyer, and the verdict was verbally announced to Mr. Taher Afshar on Saturday, the 13th of Dey.
The informed source, emphasizing that this verdict is not final, stated that the case lawyer intends to appeal the verdict and will submit a request for reconsideration to the court in the coming days.
This Urmia resident was arrested on Thursday, the 26th of Tir, at the Information Office of the Police Force at Doquz Pelle in Urmia. He was released six days later from Urmia Central Prison on a temporary basis until the end of legal proceedings after posting bail of 50 million tomans.
According to this informed source, Salar Taher Afshar was summoned to and arrested at the Information Office of the Police Force in Urmia after participating in protest gatherings in Urmia that were held in support of the military actions of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Karabakh.
This informed source told Voice of America regarding Mr. Taher Afshar’s civil activities that this Azerbaijani activist has repeatedly been summoned, arrested, and convicted in his file over the past years. According to this source, he was arrested by security forces on the 16th of Tir in 1397 (2018). He was convicted in court on charges of propaganda against the system to pay one million tomans in fines in lieu of one year in punitive imprisonment.
According to this source, this Azerbaijani activist was also arrested by security forces during nationwide public protests on the 29th of Aban. He was subsequently released on a temporary basis from Urmia Central Prison until the end of legal proceedings after posting bail of 100 million tomans. Mr. Taher Afshar was summoned on the 25th of Dey through a notification to present his final defense to the General Court of West Azerbaijan Province, Branch 101 of the Criminal Court. He was ultimately sentenced to three years suspended imprisonment in lieu of eight months in prison and 20 lashes.
This is not the first time that an Azerbaijani activist has been arrested or sentenced to prison following an unfair trial. Voice of America previously reported that in continuation of the process of suppressing civil activists, dissidents, and opponents of the policies of Iran’s ruling regime, the judicial system of the Islamic Republic has sentenced another Azerbaijani civil activist named Ali Azizi to six months in prison.
The U.S. State Department has repeatedly and in various cases condemned violent crackdowns and widespread suppression of protesters, as well as repeated and continuous violations of the rights of Iranian citizens, including members of various ethnic and religious groups, by the regime ruling that country.
