Azita Rafizadeh

She is a Baha’i citizen, a teacher at the higher education institute of Baha’is. Along with her husband were arrested and condemned to prison for teaching Baha’i citizens. She has a young child

• <coverage-outsourcing id='12301'> Azita Rafizadeh and Peyman Koushk Baghi began teaching at the Baha’i Institute of Higher Education,, BIHE </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='5702'> Intelligence agents searched her house along with several other professors and directors of the BIHE and arrested a number of these citizens. These operations were the beginning of a new suppression of the Baha’i community which took a serious aim at targeting their underground educational efforts. Later the regime entered a new phase of suppression of the Baha’i citizens who aimed at nothing more than educating and contributing to the knowledge and learning in the country, by exiling and incarcerating the members of this institution. IPA has collected the human rights abuses against these Baha’i citizens </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='15889'> Two days after the clash between the security forces and the professors and administrators of BIHE, she and her husband were summoned for several hours of interrogation. IPA reports, quoting an informed source, that the questions of this interrogation were in connection to these two individuals activities at BIHE </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='15890'> Security forces, once again, contacted Peyman Koushk Baghi and summoned him and Azita Rafizadeh, but because Ms. Rafizadeh wasn’t in Iran, they were told to introduce themselves upon her return. An informed source told Iran Prison Atlas, “the person who called Mr. Koushak Baghi was very surprised and upset that Ms. Rafizadeh’s was absent from Iran and used a slightly harsh tone </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='10829'> According to HRANA she received a letter of termination of investigation and pursuit. But the case was reopened later </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='5703'> She and her husband received a written summons to appear before the Evin court, where they were asked to give an official promise never to work at, or collaborate with BIHE. According to Iran Prison Atlas, quoting an informed source, Azita Rafizadeh and Peyman Koushk Baghi’s refusal to accept this request has led to them being charged and the opening of a judicial case and the issuance of a 50 million toman bail </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='5704'> She was tried by judge Moghiseh at branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran. IPA reports that she was condemned to four years incarceration for the charge of “membership in illegal Baha’i organizations with the aim of acting against national security through illegal activity in the educational institute, BIHE." Her initial verdict was confirmed by the court of appeals </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='5706'> She was transferred to the women’s ward in Evin prison to begin serving her term </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='15892'> Peyman Koushk Baghi was arrested and to begin serving his sentence. An informed source told Iran Prison Atlas’ researcher, “Peyman went to Evin to see his wife, but, without a warrant, or a summons or even a previous warning, he was arrested in front of the east gate of Evin prison and was taken to ward 8 of this prison. We didn’t think that Peyman’s sentence would be implemented or, at least, not in this way. Because he was in tending to his child, who was, at the time, six year old. Unfortunately, after this, they exiled Peyman to Rajaei Shahr prison and showed us that our view of them, as those who wouldn’t separate three innocent individuals in order to apply pressure on them, had been too optimistic” </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='13934'> She went on Norouz leave. According to IPA, she returned to prison after nine days </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='6892'> HRANA reported that she remains in prison and because of her husband’s imprisonment, her six year old child is left without a guardian </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='12303'> Peyman Koushk Baghi was exiled to Rajaei Shahr prison, without prior notice. The possibility of meeting in threes was taken away from this family </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='9677'> She along with several other political and ideological prisoners once again was denied their once a month visitation. Harana reports that Mr. Mardani, warden of Rajayi Shahr prison in Karaj, had asked Hassan Sadeghi, Reza Akbari Monfared, Adel and Shamim Naimi, and Paymon Kooshk Baghi to wear prison uniforms and wear handcuffs and shackles in order to visit Fatemeh Mosanna, Maryam Akbari Monfared, Elham Farahani, and Azita Rafi Zadeh who were incarcetaed in Evin prison. But the prisoners refused </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='10564'> Harana reported that once again the Rajayi Shahr's political and ideological prisoners have been denied visitation of their family members who are imprisoned in Evin </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='11546'> HRANA published a letter from Azita Rafizadeh, in which, the head of the judiciary is requested to consider the situation of her six year old child and her husband, Payam Koushk Baghi. Ms. Rafizadeh writes, “our incarceration, especially, the simultaneous imprisonment of me and my husband, will no doubt have an adverse effect on a child at time when he/she needs it the most.” The signature on the letter dates from 2016 </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='18244'> Along with some other political prisoners of Evin’s women’s ward issued a statement, published by Human Rights Defenders, expressed their concern about the displacement of Rajai Shahr political prisoners </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='18579'> After the collective quarantine of political prisoners in Rajai Shahr and the suspension of family visits, she wrote a letter to her child, Bashir </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='27113'> <reference source='https://united4iran.org/fa/womenoffreedom'> The graffiti by seven Iranian women political prisoners in San Francisco's Clarion Alley was unveiled and the “In Praise of Women of Freedom” campaign started work. The images of these seven women were painted by Shaghayegh Siroos as part of a campaign by United for Iran in collaboration with IPA. The campaign aims to raise awareness on the situation of women imprisoned in Iran; women who have been imprisoned for their ideas or political or civil activities. The graffiti is located in the famed Clarion Alley, a narrow alley which holds paintings of many artists from around the world, often with political and social content </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='26981'> She was released from prison </coverage-outsourcing>