Fuad Naeimi is a prominent Baha’i organizer in Sari, in the province of Mazandaran. In September 2007, he was convicted of “being active in the Baha’i sect” and commenced his sentence on 29 May 2008, consisting of a two and a half year imprisonment term and two years subsequent banishment to a small town in the province of Fars known as Eqlid.
On Thursday, 18 December 2008, Iran Press News posted the following in Persian, which appears below in translation:
Since May 29, 2008, Fuad Naeimi, a member of the Baha’i community, has continued to languish in prison.
This religious activist was arrested on the above date by the Ministry of Intelligence at a time when his file had not yet been processed by the judiciary. On 1 June 2008, he was taken from prison to the court with his hands and feet in chains, and after three days an order for his arrest was issued. He has been incarcerated since that date.
Fuad Naemi was charged with membership in a group of khademin (individuals who are responsible for the activities of the Baha’i community in a locality), actions against national security, and coordination of [Baha’i] study classes. For these charges, he was sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment and then two years banishment to the town of Eqlid in Fars. This sentence was ratified by the appeals court.
It should be noted that previously, Mr. Naeimi was arrested three times by the security forces on charges of religious and social activities. The first of these arrests took place in 1998, when along with his wife and two month old daughter, and without a trial and solely based on an arrest warrant, he was seized and taken to prison, where he remained incarcerated for three weeks. However, his wife, Shaqayiq Iqani, was released temporarily after 10 days because of the illness of their child.
His second arrest took place a year later by the Ministry of Intelligence who this time produced a warrant for his arrest. He was incarcerated for 58 days in solitary confinement.
During his third arrest, the security agents provided an arrest warrant and searched his residence. Afterwards, he was taken to prison where he was kept for 21 days in solitary confinement.
At present he is incarcerated among the general population of the prison.
End of report by Iran Press News.
[Source in Persian: http://www.iranpressnews.com/source/051299.htm. Translation by Ahang Rabbani.]
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