Teachers' Union Activists Arrested in Iran to Serve Prison Sentences

Three teachers' union activists have been arrested in Iran to serve their prison sentences, as the authorities continue their crackdown on organized labor.

The Coordinating Council of Teachers Unions in Iran reported that Mohammad Ali Zahmatkesh, Afshin Razmjooei and Mojgan Bagheri were apprehended at their homes on November 20.

Zahmatkesh and Razmjooei were sentenced to five years in prison and Bagheri faces two years’ imprisonment. 

The council also said that union activist Rasoul Bodaghi returned to prison after his three-day furlough expired.

Bodaghi was arrested last year and sentenced to a total of five years’ imprisonment for "assembly and conspiracy," as well as "propaganda against the system." 

The council has condemned what it called "the systematic case fabrications" against union activists and its members.

Unrest has rattled Iran since last year’s summer in response to declining living standards, wage arrears and a lack of welfare support. 

The September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody breathed new life into the protests, which the authorities have tried to quell with brutal force.

More than 500 people were killed by security forces during demonstrations sparked by Amini's death and over 20,000 people were unlawfully detained, activists say. 

Following biased trials, the judiciary has handed down stiff sentences, including the death penalty, to protesters. Seven of them have been executed so far.