Three student and labor activists were arrested on the sidelines of the first trial of Haft Tappeh detainees.
While the Haft Tappeh detainees' trial was held in Tehran on Saturday, August 3, reports so far indicate the arrest of three labor and student activists in front of the Revolutionary Court.
The first court session of Esmaeil Bakhshi, Sepideh Gholian, Ali Nejati, Amir Amirgholi, Asal Mohammadi, Sanaz Allahyari, and Amir Hossein Mohammadifard, as defendants in the Haft Tappeh case, was held on Saturday, August 3, at Branch 28 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, and reports indicate that security agents prevented the presence of the family and friends of the arrested individuals in the court premises.
The Haft Tapeh Independent Workers Telegram channel also reported that, while the trial was being held, a number of "plainclothes forces" checked the documents of "Raham Yeganeh" and "Hirad Pirbadaghi", student and labor activists, and arrested the two "without a warrant" and transferred them to the security police.
Reports indicate that student activist Farid Lotfabadi has also been arrested by security agents in front of the Revolutionary Court.
The first court hearing for the defendants in the Haft Tappeh case took place at a time when labor activist Esmaeil Bakhshi and civil rights activist Sepideh Gholian were first arrested in November of last year during protests by workers at the Haft Tappeh Sugar Company. After their release, the two announced that they had been tortured and forced to make "forced confessions" during their detention.
Sepideh Gholian is also currently on a hunger strike to protest the insults inflicted on her family by Qarchak Prison officials and to express support for Amir Hossein Mohammadifard and Sanaz Allahyari.
Ali Nejati, a member of the board of directors of the Haft Tappeh Workers' Union, was arrested at his home on November 29 last year on charges of interfering in the strikes of Haft Tappeh sugarcane workers. After some time, on February 29 of the same year, he was released from prison on medical leave due to a heart and respiratory condition.
Amirhossein Mohammadifard, editor-in-chief of the student publication Gam, and Sanaz Alhayari, members of the editorial board, two arrested defendants who have been in custody since January 9, 2018, in the case of protests by workers at the Haft Tapeh Sugar Company, recently announced in an open letter from Evin Prison that they will go on a hunger strike.
Ten days after starting her hunger strike on July 14, Sanaz Alhayari ended her hunger strike due to her deteriorating physical condition and the insistence of her family, but her husband, Amir Hossein Mohammadifard, is still on hunger strike.
Also, the Iranian Writers' Association recently issued a statement calling for the immediate and unconditional release of the Haft Tappeh detainees.
Previously, Amnesty International issued a statement on the occasion of International Workers' Day (May 1st) calling on the authorities of the Islamic Republic to immediately release workers and civil society activists who were arrested during strikes and other peaceful protests.
Source: Voice of America
