French citizen Fariba Adelkhah's prison sentence increased to 6.5 years in appeals court; Paris mayor reacts
The six-year prison sentence of Fariba Adelkhah, an Iranian-French researcher imprisoned in Iran, previously issued by the Revolutionary Court, was increased by the Court of Appeal.
On Tuesday, July 3, the Judiciary Spokesperson announced the latest status of Fariba Adelkhah's case, stating that the verdict issued by the first instance court was confirmed by the appeals court, and the Iranian-French researcher was sentenced to a total of 6 years and 6 months in prison, of which five years will be enforceable according to the law.
Fariba Adelkhah, an Iranian-French researcher at the Paris Foundation for Political Science Studies, was previously sentenced by Judge Salavati, head of Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court, to five years in prison on charges of "gathering and colluding against security" and one year in prison for the charge of "propaganda against the system." This sentence was increased to six years and six months, according to Gholamhossein Esmaili.
Saeed Dehghan, Fariba Adelkhah's defense attorney, also confirmed the news on Twitter, writing that when the maximum penalty for "propaganda against the system" is one year in prison, I wish the judiciary spokesperson would explain their justification for the extra "half" year.
Following the announcement of the confirmation of Fariba Adelkhah's sentence by the Court of Appeal, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, while publishing a picture of Ms. Adelkhah that had been hanging on the facade of the Paris City Hall, wrote in a message: "Paris once again declares its support for Fariba Adelkhah, who has been arbitrarily detained in Iran for more than a year and whose conviction was recently confirmed by the Court of Appeal."
He added: "We still demand his release."
The judge of Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court is Abolghasem Salavati. Judge Salavati is a judge of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran who has been known for issuing unjust sentences since 2009. He has been under sanctions by the United States since December 2019 on charges of human rights violations.
According to available information, the IRGC Intelligence Organization arrested Fariba Adelkhah, a French-Iranian researcher at the Paris Foundation for Political Science Studies, along with her partner Roland Marchal, in Tehran in June of last year. After her arrest in early January of last year, she had been on a hunger strike for 51 days in protest of her imprisonment for conducting research work.
Roland Marchal, a French citizen who was arrested with Ms. Adelkhah, was also extradited to France in April of this year in exchange for the release and return of an Iranian prisoner.
Iran has intensified the detention of foreign citizens and dual nationals in recent years.
The United States Department of State has repeatedly condemned the Islamic Republic's regime's arbitrary and unjustified detention of American and other citizens, including dual-national Iranians, and called for their immediate and unconditional release.
Source: Voice of America
