Pollution link to mysterious illness hitting thousands in Ahwaz

Pollution link to mysterious illness hitting thousands in Ahwaz

Thousands of citizens of the world's most polluted city, Ahwaz, have been admitted to hospital in recent days with severe breathing difficulties that doctors are blaming on air pollution.

The head of Jondi Shapour medical school, Dr Sayed Mohammad Hassan Sarmast, suggested that smoke from local industries could be the reason for a mysterious illness which has seen at least 3,000 people admitted to hospital for treatment, with two transferred to intensive care. Many suspect air pollution has been made worse by recent heavy rain.

Iran: Fear of Imminent Execution

Four Ahwazi Arab activists on death row have been transferred to unknown place. They are feared to be at imminent risk of execution.

Informed sources have told EAHRO that the authorities  transferred Ghazi Abbasi, 31, Abdolreza Amir Khanafareh, 26, Abdolamir Majdami, 33, and Jassem Moghaddam, 28, from Falahiye (Shadegan) at about 1300 local time today, 3 November 2013, to undisclosed location and refusing to disclose their whereabouts. 

Ghazi Abbasi’s family has been kept in dark about his fate since 27 September 2013, after he was transferred from his cell to solitary confinement in Karoun Prison, seen by his family intend to implement his execution.

The four men sentenced to death at  Branch One of Ahwaz Revolutionary Court under Judge Ali Farhadvand on charges of “Moharebeh (enmity with God) and Corruption on earth through armed confrontation.”  The ruling was upheld on February 13, 2013 Judge Reza Farajollahi at Branch 32 of the Supreme Court. The prisoners were only informed of the Supreme Court’s decision on July 10, five months later.

In a letter to the international human rights community they refused all charges that said that they were tortured both physically and psychologically to confess to in an unfair trial that lasted only 2.5 hours and without being able to defend themselves.

EAHRo urges UN Special Rapporteur on human rights situation in Iran Dr.

Shaheed,  Special Rapporteur on torture, Juan E. Méndez and human right community  to call on Iran to halt the imminent execution of these five innocent young men.

New Arrests in Ahwaz

Iran’s intelligence services and security forces led by Brigadier Hassan Haqiqi have arrested on 12 Janaury several Ahwazi Arabs activists in Zerqan district in Ahwaz City.

EAHRO received the following names of activists who were arrested in Beit Mohareb village and Zerqan distirct:

1.  Yaqub Idizadeh, 28, father of one
2. Saeid Bachei pour, 26
3. Qader Bachaei pour, 22
4. Hussein Hussein Nejadian, 31 Married
5. Sajjad Hussein Nejadian, 29
6. Naser Abufadil, 35, father of two

Also security forces in Shaeibia arrested the following people:

1, Monji Alhari,  26
2. Jawad Alhari , 30
3. Metlab Alhari, 45
4. Farid Kaabi, 55

Current whereabouts of the detainees remain unknown.

Iran Arrests an Arab Poet and Several Sunni Arabs

According to informed sources  Iranian security and intelligence forces yesterday, 14 January 2013 arrested several Ahwazi Sunnis among them Adel Musa Al Khanfari, 27 and Ali Heidar Al Khanfari Al Batrani, 23, from Kut Abdullah district, Ahwaz city.

In a similar incident, Malek Obaid Al Bughbaish, an Ahwazi poet, from Al Kora, Maashour city, also was arrested. The whereabouts of all those arrested remains unknown.

Amnesty International calls for URGENT ACTION as Five Ahwazis Face Imminent Execution

"Five members of Iran’s Ahwazi Arab minority have been sentenced to death and may be at risk of imminent execution. They were reportedly tortured. A sixth Ahwazi Arab man was sentenced to 20 years in prison. All were arrested in connection with their activities on behalf of Iran’s Ahwazi Arab minority and are believed to have been tried unfairly.  On 7 July 2012, Mohammad Ali Amouri, Sayed Jaber Alboshoka and his brother Sayed Mokhtar Alboshoka, and teachers Hashem Sha’bani Amouri, Hadi Rashidi (or Rashedi) and Rahman Asakereh were sentenced by Branch 2 of the Ahwaz Revolutionary Court after conviction of charges including the vaguely-worded offences of “enmity against God and corruption on earth" (moharebeh va ifsad fil-arz), “gathering and colluding against state security” and “spreading propaganda against the system”. Five received death sentences, except Rahman Asakereh who was sentenced to 20 years in prison, to be served in internal exile. Two of the men were shown on a government television channel before the trial “confessing” to the allegations. The men are currently held in Karoun prison in the city of Ahvaz, Khuzestan province, and are believed to have been denied access to their lawyers and families. All six were arrested at their homes in February and March 2011.