Alireza Kafaei Sentenced to Imprisonment

Alireza Kafaei, a retired teacher and political activist, has been sentenced to six months imprisonment by the Gachsaran Revolutionary Court. The verdict has been suspended for one year in light of the defendant’s advanced age. The court hearing regarding charges against Mr. Kafaei took place on September 29.

According to Hrana news agency, citing Aftonews, Alireza Kafaei, a retired teacher and political activist, has been sentenced to six months of punitive imprisonment by the Gachsaran Branch of the Revolutionary Court.

According to the report, given the defendant’s advanced age, the sentence has been suspended for one year.

The political activist commented on the charges against him, stating: “The charge title explicitly states ‘insult to the leadership,’ while in the text of the court’s verdict, it specifically says ‘criticism of the leadership.’ However, in Article 514 of the Islamic Penal Code, which the judge cited, only ‘insulting the leadership’ is considered punishable.”

On September 19, the head of the Islamic Association of Teachers in Gachsaran was summoned to the city’s Revolutionary Court through an electronic notice issued by Mohammad Javad Karimi Nejadian, manager of the criminal court office of the city.

Mr. Kafaei’s court hearing was held on September 29.

Alireza Kafaei has a previous history of arrest and conviction. On February 9, 2020, following a complaint filed by the Guardians Council’s Legal and Legislative Affairs Office, Mr. Kafaei was arrested by the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps at his workplace. He was subsequently sentenced by the Second Criminal Court Branch of Yasuj to pay 20 million rials in fines on the charge of “spreading falsehoods with intent to disturb public opinion” under Article 698 of the Islamic Penal Code.

Alireza Kafaei is a retired teacher and political and cultural activist. Mr. Kafaei serves as head of the Islamic Association of Teachers in Gachsaran, member of the Islamic Association of Teachers in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, and secretary of the Reformists Council in Gachsaran. He was active as deputy head of Hassan Rouhani’s election headquarters in Gachsaran during the 2017 presidential election.

Source: Hrana