Activists arrested in Mashhad "have embarked on a hunger strike"
According to the family of a political activist who was arrested during a rally in front of the Mashhad courthouse last week, the prisoners have gone on a hunger strike.
Raheleh Farajzadeh Tarani, a political activist living in Canada, told Radio Farda on Saturday, August 16, that her sister, Huriyeh Farajzadeh Tarani, has gone on a hunger strike along with other detainees.
According to Ms. Tarani, the detainees are being interrogated by the Ministry of Intelligence, and none of them have been able to meet their family members during this time.
Last Sunday, August 10, more than 10 civil society activists gathered in front of the Mashhad Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office to protest the heavy prison sentence for Kamal Jafari Yazdi, but security officers arrested them.
Kamal Jafari Yazdi is one of the signatories of a letter by 14 civil and political activists who have called for the resignation of Ali Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Republic.
According to Raheleh Tarani, a case has been opened in Branch 903 of the Mashhad Revolutionary Court with a complaint from the Ministry of Intelligence for each of these political activists, while none of them have had the right to a lawyer during this period.
In addition to Huriyeh Tarani, a number of others who were arrested in Mashhad last Sunday include Pouran Nazemi, Fatemeh Sepehri, Hashem Khastar, Mohammad Hossein Sepehri, and Javad Lalmohammadi.
Previously, Fars News Agency, a media outlet close to the Revolutionary Guards, had accused the detainees of "creating insecurity" and "having ties to subversive groups," but Ms. Tarani emphasized in her interview with Radio Farda that the gathering in front of the Mashhad Justice Department was peaceful and far from causing any disruption to order, and therefore none of the detainees deserve such treatment.
Rahela Tarani expressed concern about the health of her sister, Huriyah, as well as other detainees, saying that none of them have been allowed to visit their families during this time.
In a letter published in late June, 14 political activists said that in a situation where "there is no talk of a republic or freedom," the bargaining of civil society activists would not lead anywhere "without the resignation of Seyyed Ali Khamenei and a change to the constitution."
Following the publication of this statement, 14 female activists, including Huriyeh Tarani, supported the previous activists and called for Ali Khamenei's resignation and the transition of the Islamic Republic.
Source: Radio Farda
