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Mohammad Nourizad (), born 10 December 1952) is an Iranian filmmaker, activist, and former journalist for the conservative daily ''
Kayhan ''Kayhan'' () is a Persian-language newspaper published in Tehran, Iran. It is considered "the most conservative and hard-line Iranian newspaper." Hossein Shariatmadari is the editor-in-chief of ''Kayhan''. According to the report of the ' ...
''.HAS THE STATUS OF IRANIAN CLERICS BEEN ERODED?
Raz Zimmt, September 22, 2008. Accessed 19 April 2010
He was arrested in April 2010 after writing a letter to
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure as Supreme Leader, ...
, Iran's supreme leader, urging him to apologize to the nation for the bloody crackdown on the opposition, after the disputed 2009 June presidential elections. He was again arrested in August 2019, for protesting at another dissident's trial, and convicted in August 2020.


Arrests

In November 2009, Nourizad wrote an open letter to Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third President of Iran, president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure ...
, urging him to apologize to the opposition for the bloody crackdown of the
2009 Iranian presidential election protests After incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared victory in the 2009 Iranian presidential election, protests broke out in major cities across Iran in support of opposition candidates Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi. The protests c ...
. The letter read in part,
"As commander in chief of the armed forces, you didn't treat people well after the election. Your agents opened fire, killed the people, beat them and destroyed and burnt their property. Your role in this can't be ignored, ... Your apology can cool down the wrath of the people."
In April 2010, Nourizad was arrested on charges of insulting the officials and propaganda against the regime. On April18, it was reported that Nourizad was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison and 50lashes. The sentence was confirmed in early June 2012, shortly before the anniversary of the election protests. He was released after 170 days. A year earlier, Nourizad had "aroused a wave of protest and criticism" with an article on his blog (Gah-e Nevesht) calling for Iran’s leading clerics to avoid getting involved in governmental affairs, after several such clerics called for the dismissal of President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...
's vice president,
Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei (; born 16 November 1960) is an Iranian conservative politician and former intelligence officer. As a senior Cabinet member in the administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he served as Chief of Staff from 2009 to ...
. (Mashaei had made a statement regarding the friendly relations between the Iranian nation and the Israeli people, as opposed to the Israeli state.) On August 18, 2020, Nourizad's lawyer said that his client had sentenced to eight months in prison, 74lashes and a one-year exile for "Presence in Front of Courthouse", and a further 74lashes for "spreading lies". The first conviction was in relation to Nourizad having been present in front of a courthouse in
Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...
on August10, 2019, while another dissident was on trial.


Hunger strike

On 11 December 2010, Nourizad started a
hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...
to protest a lack of attention from Iranian authorities to his complaints of alleged mistreatment by interrogators at the
Evin prison Evin Prison () is a prison located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran. The prison has been the primary site for detaining Iran's political prisoners since 1972, before and after the Iranian Revolution, in a purpose-built wing nicknamed "E ...
. On 16 December authorities detained his family members after they showed up outside the prison to inquire about his failing health.


Apologizing for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

On July 15, 2013, Nourizad kissed the feet of a 4-year-old Baháʼí boy whose parents had been arrested for participation in the
Baháʼí Institute for Higher Education The Baháʼí Institute for Higher Education (BIHE), is a unique open university in Iran, which has been portrayed as an underground university, established by the Baháʼí community of Iran in 1987 to meet the educational needs of young people ...
, saying: "…why shouldn't I kiss your feet as a representative of the office of [Iran's Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure as Supreme Leader, ...
] and the [many] Shi'ite sources of emulation?" and published the event on his blog. The boy's father responded in a letter from prison dated July 18 saying in part: "Mr. Nourizad! Standing before Artin, you knelt and kissed his feet. I found this to be an utmost expression of love and respect, not to Artin but to the pure human spirit. At the same time, I wish that no person be forced to kneel before another person out of shame. …. Mr. Nourizad! You asked Artin to slap you and to spit on you. I heard this request as your attempt to ease his pain, and the utmost sign of your honesty and your acceptance of responsibility. At the same time, I wish that no human body should have to be exposed to such a thing, as the body houses the human spirit and the human spirit is a display of the Divine one." In September 2013, Nourizad filmed Mohammad Maleki, former Rector of the
University of Tehran The University of Tehran (UT) or Tehran University (, ) is a public collegiate university in Iran, and the oldest and most prominent Iranian university located in Tehran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as ...
, publicly apologizing in a similar way for his part in turning away Baháʼí students from Iranian universities.


Voice from prison

On 29 April 2020 a voice file (duration: 7:33 minutes) attributed to Mohammad Nourizad was published on
Shirin Ebadi Shirin Ebadi (; born 21 June 1947) is an Iranian Nobel laureate, lawyer, writer, teacher and a former judge and founder of the Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. In 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her pioneering effor ...
's official
Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...
channel, in which Mohammad Nourizad, from Vakil-Abad prison in
Mashhad Mashhad ( ; ), historically also known as Mashad, Meshhed, or Meshed in English, is the List of Iranian cities by population, second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. ...
, announced:
“… as to protest against the pressure on my family, I decided to commit voluntary suicide and its news will spread in ten, five, six days. I didn't voice but veracity. ..I am here n prisonfor telling the truth; then the liars and the thieves and the murderers are out. ..I wish, one day, y peopleget rid of
Mullah Mullah () is an honorific title for Islam, Muslim clergy and mosque Imam, leaders. The term is widely used in Iran and Afghanistan and is also used for a person who has higher education in Islamic theology and Sharia, sharia law. The title h ...
and the irresponsibles and the non-transparents”.


Filmography


Awards

*2009 - Best Story at
Noor Iranian Film Festival The Noor Iranian Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Los Angeles, California, founded by cultural producer Siamak Ghahremani and co-founder Anthony Azizi in 2007. The festival's namesake comes from the word Nur, also spelled Noor, mea ...
in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nourizad, Mohammad Iranian film directors Iranian screenwriters Persian-language film directors Iranian television directors Iranian bloggers Prisoners and detainees of Iran Iranian prisoners and detainees Living people 1952 births Iranian democracy activists Iran University of Science and Technology alumni 21st-century screenwriters Political prisoners in Iran 21st-century Iranian journalists