Jailed Iranian Protester’s Family Harassed after Death Sentence Quashed

The father of jailed Iranian protester Sahand Noor Mohammadzadeh says security agents continue to harass and threaten his family after his son’s death sentence was quashed by the judiciary.

Noor Mohammadzadeh was arrested in front of his house in Tehran during protests on October 4, 2022, and was sentenced to death two months later for allegedly attempting to break the guardrail of a highway and setting fire to a dustbin. 

The Supreme Court canceled the death sentence in March this year and sentenced him to six years of imprisonment and 10 years of exile in Kerman Province, according to his lawyer.

In a recent interview with the Emtedad news website, Noor Mohammadzadeh’s father, Jafar, said he had received a call from an individual claiming to be a representative of a security agency. 

"Do not assume that Sahand's execution was halted due to the efforts of your lawyer or domestic and foreign media. The kindness of the system is behind the decision to change the sentence," he quoted the man as saying. 

"Do not think that execution is the only form of punishment for Moharebeh [waging war against God]. It can also result in exile, amputation and other severe punishment," the man also said.

Noor Mohammadzadeh’s lawyer, Hamid Ahmadi, received notification of the cancellation of the death sentence against his client on March 29. However, the charge of “waging war against God,” which can carry a death sentence, still remains in place.

Noor Mohammadzadeh is held in Rajaee Shahr Prison in Karaj, west of Tehran.

In an audio file sent to IranWire in December, he rejected the accusations against him. He also said that intimidation and threats by his interrogators forced him to admit guilt. The prisoner also said he had been informed of his imminent execution and taken to the gallows on several occasions. 

After the release of the audio file, an informed source disclosed that Noor Mohammadzadeh was subjected to renewed threats and intense interrogation regarding the recording. 

At the end of the questioning process, the authorities told him, "You are making your case worse with these actions." Noor Mohammadzadeh defiantly responded, "I’ve been sentenced to death for something I didn’t do. What more could happen to me?"