Arash Sadeghi

Arash Sadeghi (Persian: آرش صادقی, born September 29, 1986[2][3]) is an Iranian activist[4][5] and a political prisoner known best for his hunger strike as an act of protest against the detention of his wife without any judiciary proof or legal warrant. Sadeghi was a university student in Allameh Tabatabaei University in Tehran where he was expelled by the authorities due to his political activities.

Arash Sadeghi
Born (1986-09-29) September 29, 1986
Known forHuman rights activism
SpouseGolrokh Ebrahimi Iraee[1]

Sadeghi ended his hunger strike after 71 days after his wife was granted temporary release from prison.[6] He was released from prison on May 1, 2021.[7] Sadeghi was arrested again on October 12, 2022 during the Mahsa Amini protests.[8]

Activism

He was first arrested on July 9, 2009 after the results of the controversial 2009 Presidential Election were announced due to which Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would be kept in power for a second term. He was then taken to custody from which he was released after 90 days. He was arrested again for a second time in December of the same year.

In 2013 he was sentenced to 19 years in prison for the following charges: propaganda against the government, defamation of the supreme leader, and threatening national security.[9][10]

Sadeghi went on a hunger strike on October 24, 2016[11] to protest against the arrest of his wife who was detained on the charge of writing a fiction which has not yet been published.[12][13] The short story was handwritten in her personal diary which was confiscated in a raid by government security agents. Her short personal story in her journal was about Stoning Women to death which has been carried out by the Iranian judiciary.

As of 2016 there were multiple campaigns raising awareness about his condition.[11]

Mother's death during security forces' raid

During an earlier raid by Iranian security forces in 2010 when he was not home, his mother suffered a heart attack and died a few days later in hospital as a result of the heart attack. The security agents kept ransacking the house while she laid on the floor due to the heart attack.[14]

Cancer affliction and denied treatment

Arash Sadeghi has been diagnosed with a bone tumor.[15] Amnesty criticized the Iranian authorities for “disregarding medical advice which recommends his immediate transfer to a facility specializing in cancer treatment.”[16]

Sadeghi was reported to have suffered pain in his shoulder for several months, with the prison clinic in Raja’i Shahr, Karaj, prescribing anti-inflammatory drugs. Finally he received an X-ray in May 2018 and later an MRI.[17]

On May 10, 2021, it was reported that Sadeghi had been released from prison on May 1, 2021, pursuant to a May 2020 law that reduced prison sentences for political prisoners.[7]

Hunger strike

Sadeghi has been on hunger strike for several times. His kidney and stomach ailments were attributed to the hunger strikes.[18]

Twitter Campaign

On the 68th day of his strike, Iranian Twitter users started a widespread campaign to raise awareness about Arash Sadeghi's critical condition; consequently, the hashtag #SaveArash became the number 1 trending hashtag on Twitter.[19][20]

2022 arrest

During the Mahsa Amini protests Sadeghi was arrested again on October 12, 2022. His father, Hossein Sadeghi, broke out the news on his Twitter account by writing only one sentence: "Arash Sadeghi was arrested." In a call to his family, Sadeghi said that he was transferred to ward 209 of Evin Prison which is run by the government's Ministry of Intelligence.[8]

See also

References
  1. "Iranian activist in critical condition on 68th day of hunger strike". The Daily Dot. December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2016.
  2. "Caught in a web of repression: Iran's human rights defenders under attack". www.amnesty.org. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  3. Amnesty International (2017). "Caught in a web of repression" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2018.
  4. "تاریخچه پرونده: آرش صادقی". Frontline defenders.
  5. "Iran: Writer facing imminent imprisonment for story about stoning". www.amnesty.org. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
  6. "Jailed Iranian activist ends hunger strike after wife freed". BBC News. January 3, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  7. "Arash Sadeghi released from prison". Front Line Defenders. May 10, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  8. "زینب موسوی و آرش صادقی دستگیر شدند" [Zeinab Mousavi and Arash Sadeghi were arrested] (in Persian). October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  9. "بازداشت و انتقال آرش صادقی به بند دو-الف زندان اوین". Radio Zamane.
  10. "آرش صادقی برای اجرای حکم ۱۹ سال زندان بازداشت شد". Persian Deutsche Welle.
  11. Alimardani, Mahsa (December 29, 2016). "Iranian Civil Rights Defender Continues Hunger Strike, Protesting His Wife's Arrest For Fiction Writings". Global Voices. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  12. "آرش صادقی پس از یک ماه و نیم به اعتصاب غذا در زندان ادامه می‌دهد". Persian VOA.
  13. "آرش صادقی از زندان به بیمارستان منتقل شد". Persian Radio France.
  14. "Iran's activists jailed and beaten for speaking out". The Guardian. November 23, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  15. "Seriously ill Iranian political prisoners intentionally denied medical treatment". Iran News Wire. February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  16. "Iran: Allow cancer treatment for Arash Sadeghi". Amnesty International Australia. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  17. "Amnesty Urges Transfer Of Jailed Activist To Cancer Treatment Center". Radio Farda. July 6, 2018. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  18. "Iran: Three activists on hunger strike after violent prison transfer". www.amnesty.org. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  19. آرش صادقی، زندانی سیاسی ترند اول جهانی در توییتر شد., آرش صادقی، زندانی سیاسی، برای ساعاتی به ترند اول جهانی در شبکه توییتر تبدیل شد..
  20. "Iranian Civil Rights Defender Continues Hunger Strike, Protesting His Wife's Arrest For Fiction Writings | Global Voices". Global Voices. December 29, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2016.
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