Student Activist Mohamad Ghafarian Sentenced to 3 1/2 Years In Prison And 70 Lashes

A three and half years imprisonment and seventy lashes sentence was upheld for electrical engineering student at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mohamad Ghaffarian.

According to reports by the Human Rights Activists News Agency, the sentence of three and years in prison plus seventy lashes issued by a lower court and upheld by the Court of Appeals has been delivered to Mohamad Ghaffarian.

He was sentenced to one year in prison for insulting the Supreme Leader, two years in prison for anti-national security acts, six months in prison plus 35 lashes for disturbing the public order and 35 lashes for insulting the president.

This sentence was issued, even though he was only charged with anti-national security acts at the time of arrest and interrogations. The charge of insulting the president was not even mentioned during his trial.

Ghaffarian has twenty days from the date the sentence was delivered to appeal his sentence.

Previously, Ghaffarian was arrested during a protest on February 20, 2010 and was incarcerated for about one month. Despite receiving a rank of 206 on the masters degree entrance exam, he was rejected for Masters degree studies and was suspended from continuing his education.

Source: HRANA

Arrest Of Baha’is In Najafabad, Esfahan

On Tuesday May 15, four Baha’is were arrested in Najafabad.

According to reports received by the Human Rights Activists News Agency, six Intelligence Ministry agents from Najafabad (a suburb of Esfahan) entered the home of a Baha’i with a warrant and, after a search of the home and a brief interrogation of the people present, they arrested four Baha’is.

Bahram Ferdowdian, Mana Pirali, Sholeh Afshari and Azam Tabibi were the Baha’is arrested.

The agents also arrested a Moslem man along with his wife and two children that were in the home.

All the people arrested were taken to Dastgerd prison in Esfahan.

During the search of the home, another Baha’i named Arash Haghighi arrived at the home, the agents asked him to sign the list of items being confiscated and after he refused they physically assaulted and beat him.

Source: HRANA