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Political Prisoner Maryam Akbari-Monfared Behind Bars for 12 Years Without Furlough

25 Oct 21
Political Prisoner Maryam Akbari-Monfared Behind Bars for 12 Years Without Furlough

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); October 25, 2021: Political prisoner Maryam Akbari-Monfared who has spent more than 12 years in prison without one day of furlough, is under increasing pressure since her prison exile to Semnan Prison.

According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, political prisoner Maryam Akbari-Monfared has been under increasing pressure since being prison exiled to Semnan Prison.

She was exiled from Evin Prison to Semnan Prison on 9 March 2021 and has no phone access to her children.

An informed source told Iran Human Rights: “Maryam is under increasing pressure from the security forces through her phone calls and contact with other prisoners who are all non-political. Maryam is forced to contact her family in the presence of security forces and an officer from prison security when they dictate. She’s complained about it but the prison authorities told her that they have orders to control her phone calls.”

In the meantime, her family are unable to make weekly visits due to the distance and can only make the journey once a month. This is particularly difficult for Maryam who is a mother of three daughters and has no way of getting updates about them.

“According to the new moharebeh laws, her case should have been re-examined and she should’ve been released but her requests for retrial were rejected by the Supreme Court twice. She is under the most intense pressure for the complaint she filed for an investigation into the execution of her siblings in the 1988 massacre. The Tehran judiciary and intelligence forces have repeatedly told her that she must retract her complaint,” the source added.

Maryam Akbari-Monfared was arrested following the 2009 nationwide protests at her home on 31 December 2009. She was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for moharebeh and acting against national security by Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court.

Supporting the People’s Mojahedin Organisation of Iran has been cited as the main offence in her case but her husband, Hassan Jaffari had previously told media that her only contact had been a few phone calls from her brother and sister from their base in Camp Ashraf, Iraq.