Zaghari-Ratcliffe condemns Iran’s ‘cruel’ rearrest of wildlife activist couple
Summary
Two Iranian environmentalists, Houman Jokar and Sepideh Kashani, were arrested again by Iran’s intelligence ministry on July 1. Their family and lawyer do not know why they were taken or where they are now. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who spent six years in an Iranian prison, called the rearrest very cruel, especially since Kashani had suffered two years in solitary confinement before.Key Facts
- Houman Jokar and Sepideh Kashani are a husband and wife who worked to protect the endangered Asiatic cheetah in Iran.
- They were first arrested in 2018, accused of spying using wildlife cameras, but these charges were widely seen as false.
- Both were part of the Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation, which is now closed.
- Kashani’s sister, Sima, was also arrested on July 1, and all their electronic devices were taken.
- They have been allowed only two phone calls since their latest arrest.
- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe met Kashani in prison and described solitary confinement as a severe form of torture.
- More than 6,000 people have been detained amid a broad crackdown on civil society and dissent in Iran.
- The Iranian Ministry of Intelligence confirmed the arrests but has not given any reason.
Read the Full Article
This is a fact-based summary from The Actual News. Click below to read the complete story directly from the original source.
