Mostafa Daneshju, Lawyer and Gonabadi Dervish Rights Activist, Arrested
As heavy prison sentences continue to be handed down to arrested Dervishes following the incident on Golestan-e Haftom Street in Tehran, Mostafa Daneshju, a lawyer and arrested Gonabadi Dervish, has been detained.
According to the Majzoban-e Nur website on social media, which publishes news about Gonabadi Dervishes, Mostafa Daneshju was arrested in the early hours of Sunday, July 8, when armed officers raided his mother’s home.
This Gonabadi Dervish rights activist announced during his arrest that he would begin a dry hunger strike.
Based on this report, the arrest warrant for Mostafa Daneshju was issued by the Third Branch of Iran’s Security Prosecutor’s Office, and to date there is no information about his whereabouts or detention location. It is reported that this arrest follows the filing of charges against Mr. Daneshju in 2017.
Mostafa Daneshju was imprisoned from April 2011 to April 2015 due to his belief in the Gonabadi order and his acceptance of legal representation for imprisoned Dervishes. During the trial proceedings, he was tried in absentia while imprisoned in Sari Prison and was sentenced to imprisonment.
Meanwhile, Majzoban-e Nur has published the sentences of several arrested Dervishes from the Golestan-e Haftom Street clashes. According to the verdicts, Amin Soleimani, Reza Nematollahi, and Hossam Moeinni were each sentenced to 7 years imprisonment, 74 lashes, 2 years deprivation from group membership, media activities and online activities, and 2 years travel ban. Akbar Dadashi was sentenced to 6 years imprisonment and 74 lashes, Musa Fazlipour, Hossein Jashn, and Omid Mahdavi to 2 years imprisonment, and Kian Nejadhassani to 1 year imprisonment.
During detention, Gonabadi Dervishes protested beatings during interrogation, lack of access to lawyers, and lack of fair trial. Some Dervishes refused to appear in court due to violation of their legal rights. Other Dervishes considered ideological questions and certain matters raised in the indictment as examples of thought investigation and refused to appear in court.
A gathering of Gonabadi Dervishes in front of Pasdaran Police Station on February 4 of last year to protest the arrest of an elderly Dervish turned violent with the intervention of plainclothes officers and police forces. During these clashes, several police and Basij members were killed, and hundreds of Gonabadi Dervishes were arrested.
In recent months, concerning reports have emerged regarding violations of the rights of imprisoned Dervishes, prompting reactions from international organizations. On May 16, the International Federation of Human Rights Organizations, referring to the trial of arrested Gonabadi Dervishes accompanied by “cover-ups,” called this action a “mockery of justice” and “blatant violation of international standards.”
The U.S. State Department also, in March of last year, while condemning the suppression of Gonabadi Dervishes, reacted to the suspicious death of one of these Dervishes in detention and described it as concerning.
Source: Voice of America
