Members of Iranian Charity Organization Detained ‘Following Complaint by IRGC’s Tharallah Base’

“Imam Ali Student Volunteer Aid Society” in its first statement following the arrest of its founder and two members, states that they have been detained following a complaint by IRGC’s Tharallah base, and on charges of “insulting” the leader and founder of the Islamic Republic and “acting against national security.”

In a statement by this charity organization, it is emphasized that despite a previous order, the detainees have not been released on bail, their whereabouts are unknown, and “effectively no formal accountability has taken place in this matter.”

According to the statement, Sharmin Mimandinejad, founder of the charity organization, Katayoun Afrazeh, the inspector, and Morteza Keymanesh, its public relations officer, have been detained “simultaneously”; while Mr. Mimandinejad’s house “was searched for over four hours.”

The charge against Sharmin Mimandinejad is “insulting” the leader and founder of the Islamic Republic, while the charges against Ms. Afrazeh and Mr. Keymanesh are “acting against national security.”

According to the Imam Ali charity organization, security and judicial forces, after searching the founder’s residence, accompanied him to the organization’s office, disabled cameras, took all financial and administrative documents, computers, and servers.

The statement also mentions that during the arrest of Morteza Keymanesh, “security forces resorted to violence and beating, and the alleged judicial warrant for searching the house was not fully observed.”

Ms. Afrazeh was arrested after going to the place where Morteza Keymanesh was detained.

The Iranian charity organization speculates that the sole pretext for entering the members’ homes and office was “to gather information in order to base subsequent charges on this collected information.”

In recent hours, some media outlets close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have published reports about the arrests in early Tir month.

Farsnews Agency, among others, claimed that the founder of the charity organization “under the guise of public benefit activities, cooperated with anti-Iranian centers and opposing media.”

The news agency has not provided clarification about what “anti-Iranian centers and opposing media” means. In the charges mentioned in the charity organization’s initial statement, such accusations against Mr. Mimandinejad were not raised.

Tasnim news agency also published a similar report, stating that the founder and members of Imam Ali Society, by raising “claims such as fighting discrimination, as well as human rights issues and combating poverty and social problems,” intended to “place Iran and its people under pressure.”

“Imam Ali Student Volunteer Aid Society” in its statement, while calling for the immediate and unconditional release of its members, emphasized that it “does not accept any file-building or accusations.”

This organization is a registered charity in Iran that began its activities in the late 1990s.

Imam Ali Society, as it states itself, “is an independent, non-political, and non-governmental civil organization.”

This foundation had previously reported “threatening” phone calls with some of its members while assisting citizens, including following the widespread flooding of 2019.

No official or judicial authorities of the Islamic Republic have yet taken a position regarding recent events, and the charges have not been formally disclosed.

Imam Ali charity foundation stated that its activities “have not been halted.”

Source: Radio Farda