Final sentences for eight environmental activists in Iran issued: total of 58 years in prison
After more than two years of temporary detention of eight environmental activists in Iran, the imprisoned environmental activists were sentenced to a total of 58 years in prison.
On Tuesday, February 19, while announcing the final verdicts in the environmental activists' case, Judiciary Spokesperson Gholamhossein Esmaili said that Morad Tahbaz and Niloufar Bayani, among the defendants in the case, have been sentenced to 10 years in prison and disgorgement of funds received on charges of "collaborating with the United States."
According to the announcement by this judiciary official, Hooman Jokar and Taher Ghadirian have also been sentenced to 8 years in prison each on similar charges.
Accordingly, Sam Rajabi, Sepideh Kashani, and Amirhossein Khaleghi Hamidi, other imprisoned environmental activists in Iran, were also sentenced to 6 years in prison each on charges of "espionage." Abdolreza Kouhpayeh, another detained environmental activist, was sentenced to 4 years in prison on charges of "gathering and colluding to act against security."
The final sentences published show that the sentences of these environmental activists have not changed despite all the criticism, and these heavy sentences have been approved by the authorities of the Islamic Republic.
Previously, the United Nations Environment Program had expressed deep concern over the issuance of heavy prison sentences to a number of environmental activists accused of "espionage" in Iran.
The US State Department spokesperson had sentenced Iranian environmental activists to six to ten years in prison after the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Court's initial verdict.
Hooman Jokar, Taher Ghadirian, Morad Tahbaz, Sepideh Kashani, Niloufar Bayani, Amirhossein Khaleghi, Sam Rajabi, and Abdolreza Kouhpayeh are among the environmental activists detained in Iran. These defendants have been in temporary detention for more than two years.
Kavous Seyed Emami was among those arrested, and two weeks after his arrest, news of his death in prison was released. Islamic Republic officials said the cause of his death was suicide, but Seyed Emami's family has denied this claim.
The environmental crisis in Iran has long attracted the attention of the international community. US officials have also repeatedly warned about the mismanagement of Iran's natural resources, widespread deforestation, and unnecessary and unplanned dam construction aimed at lining the pockets of corrupt officials of the Islamic Republic regime, and have cited it as one of the main factors in the emergence of various environmental crises, including devastating floods and unprecedented droughts.
Source: Voice of America
