US supports signatories of letter calling for Khamenei’s resignation from leadership; we demand their freedom
The US State Department spokesperson, naming Abdolrasoul Mortazavi, Hashem Khavastgar, Mohammad Nourizad, Mohammad Sepahri, Fatema Sepahri and three others, condemned the issuance of lengthy prison sentences for them, solely because of “their call for political change”.
Morgan Ortagus, spokesperson for the US State Department, emphasized on Thursday, February 24 on his Twitter account: “We call for the immediate release of all political prisoners in Iran.”
On June 12 this year, 14 civil and political activists inside Iran published an open letter calling for Ali Khamenei’s resignation from leadership and fundamental changes to the constitution.
Eight signatories of the letter calling for Ayatollah Khamenei’s, the leader of the Islamic Republic’s, resignation—named Hashem Khavastgar, Mohammad Nourizad, Abdolrasoul Mortazavi, Mohammad Hossein Sepahri, Fatema Sepahri, Hashem Rajaei, Mohammad Hosseinpour and Mortaza Ghassemi—have been sentenced by the Revolutionary Court to a total of 72 years in prison, 6 years of travel ban, and 6 years of exile.
Following the publication of the first letter, 14 female activists in Iran issued a statement calling for “Ali Khamenei’s resignation” and “transition from the Islamic Republic”.
Most of these political and civil activists have been arrested and sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Source: Voice of America
