According to reports received by the Karoon Human Rights Organization, the life sentences imposed on three Arab Ahwazi political prisoners Mohammad-Ali Amouri, Mokhtar Al-Boushoka, and Jaber Al-Boushoka, all residents of Khalafieh County (Ramshir)—have been reduced to 25 years and one day after they had spent more than 15 years in prison.
The three prisoners have been detained since 2010, initially in Karoon Prison in Ahwaz, prior to its closure, and subsequently in the Central Prison of Ahwaz (Sheiban).
According to the report, Mokhtar and Jaber Al-Boushoka continue to be denied medical leave despite suffering from multiple health conditions. Their requests to be granted medical leave have so far been rejected, raising further concerns about the physical condition of the two prisoners.
The “Al-Hiwar” Case
The three prisoners are among those prosecuted in the “Al-Hiwar” case. In the winter of 2011, Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence arrested the founding members of Al-Hiwar, a cultural institution focused on the Arabic language and the culture of Arabs in the Ahwaz region .
Al-Hiwar, meaning “dialogue” in Arabic, was established in the early 2000s by a group of young Arab students and graduates, inspired by the idea of a “Dialogue Among Civilizations.”
As part of this case, Hashem Shabani Amouri, a poet, Arabic literature teacher, and political science graduate student, and Hadi Rashedi, a chemical engineer and high-school teacher, were executed in February 2014.
Mohammad-Ali Amouri, Seyyed Mokhtar Al-Boushoka, and Seyyed Jaber Al-Boushoka were also initially sentenced to death, and their death sentences were subsequently upheld by the appeals court. However, their sentences were later commuted to life imprisonment.
Now, after more than 15 years in prison, the life sentences of the three prisoners have been reduced to 25 years and one day.
The Karoon Human Rights Organization has expressed concern over the continued imprisonment of these political prisoners and their deprivation of basic rights, particularly access to medical care and medical leave. The organization has called for their release and an end to violations of the rights of political prisoners in the Ahwaz region.
