Women's Rights Activist Detained In Iran

Iranian Women's Rights Activist Atefeh Rangriz was arrested and sent to Semnan Prison, 200 km from Tehran.

According to reports from the Iranian Women's Association's Telegram channel, Rangriz managed to convey this distressing news to her relatives during a brief phone call from prison.

Rangriz's initial arrest took place on May 1, 2019, during a demonstration on International Workers' Day in front of the parliament, where she was protesting alongside a group of fellow activists.

Following her arrest, Rangriz was held in solitary confinement in section 209 of Tehran's Evin prison for several weeks. During the period, she was denied any contact with her family and endured intensive interrogations without legal representation. She was coerced into confessing to allegedly planning protests deemed a threat to national security.

After weeks of interrogation by intelligence officials, Rangriz was brought before the prosecutor's office within Evin prison. She faced a series of charges, including "gathering and colluding against national security," "spreading propaganda against the system," "disrupting public order," and "insulting officers on duty."

While some detainees were eventually released, individuals like Atefeh Rangriz and journalist Marzieh Amiri received prison sentences. Rangriz was initially sentenced to 11 years and six months in prison, along with 74 lashes, in a summary trial. However, her sentence, along with those of other labor activists and protesters from the International Workers' Day demonstration, was later pardoned in the subsequent year.

The exact reasons behind Rangriz's detention remain shrouded in mystery but is one of a number of rearrests of protesters and opposition figures in the lead up to the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's tragic death.