Iran Letter: Nasrin Sotoudeh from Prison "Why I Went on Hunger Strike"

Nasrin Sotoudeh & Reza Khandan

Previously, I have had the honor of defending the children of my country. Punishing the children is absolutely prohibited, much less for political charges on account of their parents.

But of course, this sort of punishment has not been only limited to my family. To explain the wide scope of this unjust treatment, it is enough to remember that among the 36 female prisoners incarcerated in the political prisoner’s ward, the immediate family of 13 of them are either imprisoned or are under judicial pursuit.

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The Latest from Iran (5 January): Shaky Currency, Desperate Measures, and An Outright Lie

See also Iran Feature: Is Ahmadinejad's Government Fuelling the Currency Crisis?
The Latest from Iran (4 January): If You Yell Victory, Does It Count?

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Tehran Times: All is Well2110 GMT: Ahmadinejad Watch. Pro-Ahmadinejad State news agency strikes a very different note on the visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (see 2100 GMT). Forget all the chatter about nuclear talks; IRNA's concern is the President's declaration on "the need for vigilance against the intrigues of the enemies of humanity".

2100 GMT: Foreign Affairs (Turkish Front). Back from a break to look through reports of today's meetings in Tehran between Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Iranian officials, including President Ahmadinejad and Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi....

Davutoğlu's headline announcement was that he had delivered a "Western" offer to resume talks on Iran's nuclear programme and that Salehi had accepted: "We are waiting for a good result coming out of the willingness of the two parties to go back to the negotiating table."

Salehi confirmed that Iran was ready to return to talks "at a time and place agreed by both sides".

However, a European official said Iran had still yet to formally accept a new meeting in writing: "We still await [Iran's] response to [European Union High Representative Catherine] Ashton's letter of October. We are open to talks on confidence-building measures without preconditions....But it's up to Iran to respond in writing."

Iranian media such as ISNA and Press TV are highlighting Salehi's declaration that Iran is "ready for negotiation".

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The Latest from Iran (24 October): The "Normal" Tensions

1855 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Journalist and activist Heshmatollah Tabarzadi, serving a nine-year sentence, has written a letter asking exiled Iranian lawyers to make his case to international courts, asking for an investigation of the Supreme Leader in light of the activities of Iran's security forces and criminal justice system.

1830 GMT: Cracking Down on the Lawyers. Prominent human rights attorney Mohammad Dadkhah has appeared in court, accused of possession of a firearm.

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The Latest from Iran (16 October): Prisoners and the Economy

1905 GMT: Currency Watch. Green Correspondents is claiming that Iranian banks are offering European financial institutions a 16% brokerage fee, four times the typical rate, for wire transfers of currency.

1845 GMT: Iranian-American National Freed. A family spokesman says Iranian-American dual national Reza Taghavi, detained in Iran since 2008, has been freed from Evin Prison and will be leaving the country soon.

Tehran accused Taghavi, 71, of passing $200 in cash to an Iranian man linked to the monarchist group Tondar. There was no reason given for his sudden release.

Taghavi's lawyer had asked for the businessman's freedom on humanitarian grounds. His family claim Taghavi has diabetes and was in poor health.

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The Latest from Iran (14 October): Paying Attention

2025 GMT: Economy Watch. Khabar Online claims that President Ahmadinejad will announce the start of subsidy cuts on television at the end of next week, as support payments to 15 million families begin.

2020 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. An activist reports that Islamic Iran Participation Front member Davood Soleimani has been released after 16 months in detention.

2015 GMT: Video of the Ahmadinejad speech in Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon:

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