Iranian Human Rights Lawyer Alikordi Handed Prison Time

Prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Khosro Alikordi says a Revolutionary Court in the northeastern city of Mashhad has sentenced him to one year in prison, followed by a two-year exile to Nehbandan.

The presiding judge, Hadi Mansouri, accused Alikordi of "engaging in propaganda activities against the Islamic Republic in favor of anti-system groups" through interviews with foreign media and social media posts, the lawyer said in a video released on November 28.

Alikordi also said that he was banned from practicing law, engaging in social media activities and leaving the country for a period of two years.

The lawyer said he was being punished for having represented families of victims of the bloody state crackdown on nationwide protests that erupted in September last year.

Alikordi had faced increased scrutiny from the judiciary since taking on the representation of the family members of Abolfazl Adinezadeh after their arrest.

Adinezadeh, a 16-year-old boy, was shot and killed by agents of the Islamic Republic last year outside Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.