Mullah Fathi Mohammad Naqshbandi sentenced to 5 years in prison
Mawlavi "Fathi Mohammad Naqshbandi", the Friday prayer imam of Rask, was sentenced to 5 years in prison by the judiciary.
On August 19, 1402, the Sunni cleric Mawlawi Fathi Naqshbandi was arrested by security forces on the way from Rask to Chabahar for criticizing the government. After interrogation, he was transferred to Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad.
After his arrest, the Sistan and Baluchestan judiciary stated that the charges against him were “false speeches, slander and defamation of the Islamic Republic” and “actions against national security” in Friday prayer sermons. People also held protest rallies in the cities of Zahedan, Sarbaz, Rask, and Dashtiari to protest his arrest and imprisonment, chanting slogans against the Islamic Republic.
Now, according to reports from human rights organizations, on Monday, November 25 (December 25), Mawlavi Fathi Naqshbandi, the Imam of Rask Friday prayer and a Sunni scholar, was sentenced to 5 years in prison by the Special Court for the Clergy of Mashhad, which was confirmed by the Supreme Court and officially notified to him.
It should be noted that despite his advanced age and illness, Rouhani Naqshbandi has been in Vakilabad Prison in Mashhad for the past year.
The Islamic Republic government has sharply increased its pressure on Sistani citizens since the nationwide protests began and more than 100 citizens of Zahedan were killed on Bloody Friday, and this pressure continues. Mawlavi Abdul Hamid Esmailzai has also warned about this pressure many times, noting that the effects of discrimination between individuals are lasting and dangerous, saying: "Sunni people should have freedom and a sense of security to perform their religious rituals, including holding congregational prayers."
