This is a live-blog report on events in Iran on December 16, 2010, during the Shia mourning day of Ashura. As reports come in, they will be placed at the top of this page. To read this in chronological order it must be read from the bottom up. [8:30AM Tehran Time - December 17, 2010] [...]
Iran’s Turbulence Beneath
As the main stream media slip back into their pre-2009-Iran-presidential-election coma of blissful ignorance, the story is no longer about the courageous Iranian protesters facing their government and revealing to the world how their government torments and terrorizes them. The now almost decade long story about the threat of the Iranian nuclear program has started [...]
Issa Saharkhiz’s Lawyers Object To His Court Appearance in Handcuffs
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran | July 26, 2010 In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, the attorney of prominent Iranian journalist Issa Saharkhiz’s expressed outrage over Saharkhiz’s appearance in court with handcuffs and shackles. “Such treatment is most inappropriate for a prominent journalist such as Mr. Saharkhiz [...]
Prominent Iranian Journalist and Prisoner of Conscience, Isa Saharkhiz, Presents Written Statement of Defense to Court
by Negar Irani on July 19, 2010 Translator’s Note: I am translating Isa Saharkhiz’s moving defense behind closed doors of the Revolutionary Court in parts as it is too long to translate in one piece. In Part I Mr. Saharkhiz provides an overview of the circumstances in which he was forcefully and illegally arrested on [...]
275 Days in Prison–Issa Saharkhiz’s Poor Health after Hunger Strike
(International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran) | April 5, 2010 Journalist Issa Saharkhiz’s health has taken a turn for the worse after going on a hunger strike in March. In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, his son, Mehdi Saharkhiz, said that his father has lost 20 Kg over [...]
Why Is Iran Releasing Some Postelection Detainees?
(Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty) | March 12, 2010 by Golnaz Esfandiari The Iranian authorities in recent weeks have begun to release some of the former officials, activists, and intellectuals detained in last year’s post-election unrest. Those released in recent days include former Deputy Interior Minister Mostafa Tajzadeh, activist Abdollah Momeni, and student leader [...]
Son of leading scientist dies in jail as fears grow over fate of Iran’s political prisoners
Mohsen Rouholamini and Amir Javadifar died in Tehran’s Evin prison after being arrested at a demonstration this month. Rouholamini, the son of a prominent Iranian scientist close to the country’s political elite, died from meningitis after injuries believed to have been inflicted by his jailers went untreated.
The deaths prompted fears of a meningitis outbreak in Evin and other overcrowded detention centres where opposition figures, journalists and students are kept following last month’s disputed election. News of the deaths coincided with reports of injuries to other detainees.








