93 lawyers write to Raisi demanding the release of several prisoners

Dozens of lawyers have written a letter to the head of Iran's judiciary demanding the release of a number of their colleagues and several other civil and political activists who have been imprisoned for criticizing the government.

In a letter to Ebrahim Raisi, the head of Iran's judiciary, 93 lawyers have called for the release of a number of prisoners who are in prison for "criticizing the rulers."

In this letter, signed by figures such as Saleh Nikbakht, Abdul Fattah Soltani, Saeed Dehghan, and Farideh Ghairat, the arrest of these individuals was called "illegal" and the signatories called for immediate follow-up and action to release these individuals.

The letter, published on the Ensaf News website, mentions the names of prisoners such as Giti Pourfazel, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Mohammad Najafi, Amirsalar Davoudi, Mohammad Nourizad, Ismail Abdi, Farhad Meysami, and Keyvan Samimi.

Raisi was further asked to take action under "any legal title he deems appropriate" "to release individuals who are concerned about the public good and who have been subject to criminal prosecution."

Prominent human rights figures and organizations around the world have repeatedly protested the imprisonment of lawyers and political and civil activists in Iran and called for their release.

In late April, the European Bar Association wrote a letter to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani calling for the release of imprisoned lawyers.

Previously, Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, expressed concern about the situation of human rights activists and lawyers imprisoned in Iran and called for their immediate release, given the outbreak of the coronavirus in prisons.

Source: DW