Khatami’s Deputy and Advisor in Jail
The house to house arrests that followed Monday’s massive demonstrations against the June 12 elections, announced results and coup perpetrators continue on a daily basis as more activists, political personalities and journalists are detained by security forces and thrown into jail.
Saeed Hajjarian, former President Khatami’s political aide who was shot and permanently maimed in 2001 and lives his life on a wheelchair, was among those arrested in the last few days.
Mohammad Ali Abtahi, Khatami’s deputy during his presidency is also among the detainees. Mohsen Aminzadeh, the deputy foreign minister in Khatami’s administration, Mohammad Atrianfar, a leadership member of the Kargozaran Sazandeghi party, the prominent Abdolfatah Soltani a founding member of the Center for the Defense of Human Rights, Ibrahim Yazdi, the secretary general of the Nehzat Azadi Iran (Freedom Movement of Iran), and Mohammad Tavasoli, the director of the political office of the Freedom Movement, were also arrested on Tuesday.
Other news reports indicate the re-arrest of Behzad Nabavi, a leadership member of the Central Council of the Islamic Revolution Mujaheddin who had been initially arrested on Friday and then released. Other arrests include Hossein Zaman a pop singer and a reformist close to the Iran Participation Front.
The student Daneshamookhtegan organization whose secretary general Ahmad Zeidabadi was arrested earlier this week and whose whereabouts continue to be unknown, on Tuesday issued a statement stating that Hadi Kahalzadeh, another leadership member of its central council was arrested by authorities. Another member, Hamed Iranshahi from Daneshamookhtegan also is reported to have been detained and imprisoned.
Security agents are also reported to have arrested Saeedalah Bedashti, journalist and political activist on Monday.
No confirmations and verifications can be made regarding the arrests that have been reported to have taken place in other cities and towns in Iran because of disrupted telephone, Internet or other communications services.
News reports from Tabriz indicate that a group of medical doctors and activists close to the Freedom Movement and to the opposition known as the National-Religious group who have been protesting the outcome of the June 12 presidential election and held peaceful rallies in front of Shams Hospital were violently attacked by the police and were detained by it.
Ms Sabeti and Ms Shamloo and Messer Laya Farzadi, Hojatollah Amiri, Panahi, Abbaspour Azhari, Majid Jaberi, Amir-Hossein Jahani, Mehdi Khodadai, engineer Dadyazdeh, Ruhollah Rahimpour, Ali-Ashraf Soltani Azar, Seif Lo, Sharbianloo, Ghafar Farzadi, Ghafarzadeh, Mansur Ghafari, engineer Mehdi Yar Bahrami, Rahim Yavari and Yaghoobzadeh are also among those reported to have been arrested in Tabriz and transferred to prison.
Ruhollah Rahimpour and Amir Hossein Jahani, two student activists in Tabriz are also reported to have been arrested, while the fate of Leyla Asfari and other student detainees from Zanjan University who are said to have been summoned by intelligence agents and then detained are also now known.