Iranian student's sister accuses authorities of confessing extortion
A place in Tehran, August 30, 2020 (photo illustration).
Majid Asgarpour / WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Text by: RFI Follow
3 min
Plead guilty to a life sentence or be sentenced to death: this is the choice that was allegedly submitted to two Iranian students detained for 150 days by the Iranian security forces, accused of links with the People's Mujahedin Organization.
According to the sister of one of them, they would not have had access to a lawyer of their choice.
Illegal practices that she denounced Sunday, September 6, as the lawyer and Sakharov Prize winner Nasrin Sotoudeh, on hunger strike.
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Ali Younessi is 20 years old, as is his friend Amir Hossein Moradi.
Both are brilliant students of Sharif University in
Tehran
.
When they were arrested on April 10, Ali Younessi had a bloody face, according to his sister's testimony.
The two boys were then placed in solitary confinement for two months in Evin prison in Tehran, accused of having links with the Organization of the People's Mujahedin.
No evidence has been presented.
Coming out of solitary confinement, Ali Younessi rejected these accusations and demanded that his case no longer be handled by the Intelligence Ministry, but by an ordinary court of justice, in order to be able to defend himself, he said.
Attempt to make televised confession abusing the title of Swedish ambassador & embassy in Iran
My brother, #AliYounesi, has been detained since 150 days ago.
He was held in solidarity confinement for two months (of which 20 days in 2.5 m2 room with no window). @ AnnLinde @SweMFA
Reza Younesi رضا يونسى (@RezaYounesi) September 7, 2020
A confession and life imprisonment to escape the death penalty
The two students are still being held in Evin prison under the control of the Revolutionary Guards.
According to Ali Younessi's sister, their interrogators have been trying for three weeks to force a televised confession on them.
They would thus receive a sentence of life imprisonment, but would escape
the death penalty
.
On social networks, the faces of these two men are displayed today
alongside those of thousands of other political prisoners
.
Among them, in particular Navid Afkari - protester and renowned sportsman sentenced to the death penalty and 74 lashes after confessing under torture -, as well as the lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh.
Imprisoned in Evin also, the winner of the Sakharov Prize has been
on hunger strike since
August
11
to denounce the conditions of detention of political prisoners.
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