Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison Following Re-arrest During November Protests
Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi, a civil activist imprisoned in Iran, has been sentenced to 6 years in prison by the Revolutionary Court in a new case.
Bahare Lalezari, the spouse of Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi, announced the news on Tuesday, February 4, through an Instagram post stating that the imprisoned civil activist, following her re-arrest during the November public protests, was sentenced to 6 years in prison by Branch 24 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court on charges of “assembly and conspiracy with intent to commit crimes against national security” and “propaganda activities against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
According to available information, the court hearing for Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi’s case was held on Friday, February 1, and the 6-year prison sentence was issued on Saturday, February 2 by Judge Mohammad Reza Amouzadeh, head of Branch 24 of the Revolutionary Court, “based on a report from the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.”
The 6-year prison sentence for Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi comes as she had previously been sentenced to four years and five months in prison by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court in another case on charges of “assembly and conspiracy against national security” and “propaganda against the Islamic system,” a verdict that was upheld by Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals.
This civil activist, who had been temporarily released from Evin Prison in mid-March of last year with a bail of 150 million tomans pending the completion of her trial, was re-arrested on Sunday, November 17, and transferred to Ward 2-A of Evin Prison.
Rezvaneh Ahmad Khanbegi had previously been arrested on December 10, 2018, along with Amirmahdi Sedigh Ara and Ali-Amin Amelshi on joint charges and was sentenced in March of that year by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court to more than five years in prison in total.
Amirmahdi Sedigh Ara and Ali-Amin Amelshi were acquitted of the “propaganda against the system” charge in this case and were each sentenced to 91 days in prison on the charge of “assembly and conspiracy against national security.”
The U.S. State Department states that the Iranian regime has arrested thousands of protesters, civil activists, and representatives of workers and other sectors in the past two years.
The United States has repeatedly and in various instances condemned the violent crackdowns and widespread suppression of protesters and civil activists, as well as the repeated and continuous violations of the rights of Iranian citizens by the ruling regime in that country.
Source: Voice of America
