Friday, 19th 2020 / Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb, a political prisoner jailed in the quarantine ward of the Greater Tehran Penitentiary who went on a hunger strike since his arrest, is spending the fifth day of his hunger strike.
According to Human Rights in Iran on Friday, June 19th 2020, Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb, a civil activist and a political prisoner incarcerated in the quarantine ward of the Greater Tehran Penitentiary who is on a hunger strike in protest against the way of his summoning and the prompt enforcing of the sentence, announced his fifth day of hunger strike. This political prisoner was arrested on June 15th 2020 after being summoned to the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office in Shahriar (west of Tehran) to serve a 9-month prison sentence.
In an interview with the reporter of Human Rights in Iran, a well-informed source said: “Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb was arrested to serve the prison sentence whereas he had previously deposited a bail for the case. This civil activist was waiting for the court’s verdict to be announced, however, unfortunately after being summoned he was arrested to endure the prison sentence. He is currently being held in the quarantine ward 5 of the Greater Tehran Penitentiary and has been on a hunger strike since his arrest”.
On June 13th 2020, branch 4 of the Shahriar Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office, after summoning Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb, a civil activist living in the city, arrested him for enforcing the sentence.
This civil activist was summoned on June 13th to branch 4 of the Shahriar Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office to undergo a sentence by receiving a text message.
On June 7th 2020, Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb, the civil activist residing in Shahriar county, after attending branch 1 of the Tehran Security Prosecutor’s Office and being interrogated on the charge of “Photographing prohibited areas”, was acquitted of the charge and Ali Ghana’atkar, the investigator of the mentioned branch ordered for suspension of his prosecution.
On May 30th 2020, Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb, a civil activist residing in Shahriar city, received a summons in a new case on the charge of “Photographing prohibited areas” by Ali Ghana’atkar, an investigator at branch 1 of the Tehran Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor’s Office, “Maghaddas Court”. He was summoned to an investigation hearing to present his defense.
This case was filed against Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb while he will undergo a trial in another case in June of this year by branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran, chaired by Mohammad Moghiseh.
After enduring 4 months and 15 days of detention and enduring two periods of hunger strike with a duration of 43 days and his second hunger strike with a duration of 64 days, Zartosht Ahmadi Ragheb had temporarily been released on a bail of 150 million Tomans on January 1st 2020, pending trial.
It should be noted that in the last hours of August 27, 2019, he was arrested following an armed attack by five members of the Ministry of Intelligence on his private residence in Shahriar, after ransacking his home and confiscating his personal belongings. Ahmadi Ragheb’s arresting agents broke down his door while searching the home and even while entering the place they insulted him in the presence of his wife with vulgar words.
Considering the International Instrument of Human Rights and also the Article 5 in Universal Declaration of Human Rights, no one should be treated in a manner that causes their degrdation and humiliation.
Also individuals have the right to access a fair trial by an impartial tribunal, as enshrined in International Human Rights Instruments, as well as Article 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and Article 14 of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Hoghoghebashar.iran 