Benjamin Briere

.Benjamin Briere is a French citizen. He was arrested for photography in a restricted area and a post on his Instagram page about the mandatory hijab in Iran.

• <coverage-outsourcing id='35104'> <reference source='https://prisonatlas.com/%d8%a8%d9%86%d8%ac%d8%a7%d9%85%db%8c%d9%86-%d8%a8%d8%b1%db%8c%d8%b1/'> Benjamin Briere was arrested in a border area between Iran and Turkmenistan in Khorasan Razavi province. He was arrested for possession of a helishot. He called his family after the arrest informing them about his arrest in Iran. He was interrogated for a while at the Information Ministry holding and was later transferred to Vakil Abad Prison in Mashhad. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35105'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/vakilroaya/status/1364579620595597314?s=20'> Mr. Briere’s attorney, Saeed Dehghan, tweeted that his client is being held in Vakil Abad Prison in Mashhad. His attorneys have not gained access to his case yet. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35108'> <reference source='https://prisonatlas.com/%d8%a8%d9%86%d8%ac%d8%a7%d9%85%db%8c%d9%86-%d8%a8%d8%b1%db%8c%d8%b1/'> The last preliminary investigation session was held at the public prosecutor’s office in Mashhad. In this session, Mr. Briere’s attorney Saeed Dehghan, who was yet to study the details of the case, defended his client. Mr. Briere was accused of espionage by taking photos in restricted areas. The alleged photos were not presented to the attorney. An Instagram post of Mr. Briere about mandatory hijab in Iran has been used as an instance of propaganda against the regime. His post on Instagram said: “Why is hijab mandatory in the Islamic Republic but optional in other Muslim countries?” Since the prosecutor’s office had denied the defense team access to the case, the attorney’s defense was limited. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35111'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/bbcpersian/status/1371511097056849928?s=20'> In an interview with BBC Persian, Saeed Dehghan said the charges against Benjamin Briere are baseless. He said they shouldn’t have accused his client of espionage based on carrying or photography with a helishot. Mr. Dehghan added that if photography is prohibited in an area, there should be a warning sign so the citizens don’t accidentally take photos. Regarding Mr. Briere’s Instagram post about the mandatory hijab, Mr. Dehghan said that the hijab is optional in other Muslim countries of the region and it is in fact mandatory in the Islamic Republic. Therefore, asking a question about reality cannot be an instance of a crime. He went on to say that when a citizen, especially a foreigner who is not familiar with the laws of the country, who doesn’t gain or lose anything with the overthrow or survival of our current political regime, asks a question on social media, attributing “propaganda against the regime” to them is meaningless. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35107'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/FardadFarahzad/status/1371515354267156483?s=20'> His sister told Iran International that her brother has been interrogated twice. He was held in solitary confinement during his arrest. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35106'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/FardadFarahzad/status/1371515354267156483?s=20'> Benjamin Briere’s sister Blandine Briere told Iran International that her brother has called her three times so far. She said her brother is in a very difficult situation in prison because he cannot talk to others around him and spends most of his time alone and in silence. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35134'> <reference source='https://prisonatlas.com/%d8%a8%d9%86%d8%ac%d8%a7%d9%85%db%8c%d9%86-%d8%a8%d8%b1%db%8c%d8%b1/'> Saeed Dehghan, one of the attorneys of his case and a member of the International Bar Association (IBA) told Iran Prison Atlas (IPA) that his client has been arrested by a security or military organization and his case is currently under the supervision of the Information Ministry office in Khorasan Razavi province. He also said when arresting a foreign citizen, legal officers must have a translator with them to translate certain things like the arrest warrant, but this was not done in Benjamin Briere’s case. According to Mr. Dehghan, during the arrest, Benjamin Briere had signed all the papers presented by the officers without understanding their content. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='35135'> <reference source='https://prisonatlas.com/%d8%a8%d9%86%d8%ac%d8%a7%d9%85%db%8c%d9%86-%d8%a8%d8%b1%db%8c%d8%b1/'> Attorney Saeed Dehghan told IPA that holding Benjamin Briere in Vakil Abad Prison where he cannot communicate with anyone around him is mental torture. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='40586'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/vakilroaya/status/1475330911814172673'> Attorney Saeed Dehghan tweeted that Mr. Briere has gone on hunger strike in protest of being denied phone calls to family. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='40589'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/vakilroaya/status/1484175936165720064'> Benjamin Briere was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. Attorney Saeed Dehghan announced in a tweet that the fourth branch of the revolutionary court of Mashhad has given him this verdict for propaganda against the regime and espionage. Dehghan states that the trial was held 20 months after his arrest. Before the beginning of the session, the court branch was changed from third to fourth and the trial was held behind closed doors. Before the trial, Mr. Dehghan tweeted: “Any verdict except acquittal for the two strange charges of propaganda against the regime for a foreigner and espionage for a tourist will be outside the law.” It seems Benjamin Briere was sentenced to eight months in prison for propaganda against the regime and eight years in prison for espionage and revealing classified information. After applying article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, he will serve eight years in prison. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='40585'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/vakilroaya/status/1488379454254686208'> Saeed Dehghan, one of Benjamin Briere’s attorneys tweeted: “After 35 days and losing 13kg, Benjamin Briere broke his hunger strike at the request of his family and attorneys.” </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='40596'> <reference source='https://twitter.com/vakilroaya/status/1541781059511242753'> The seventh branch of the appeal court of Khorasan Razavi province approved the verdict of the primary court verbatim. His attorney Saeed Dehghan explained in a tweet that in his verdict, France is recognized as an “enemy state”; Expressing sympathy with the victims of the Ukrainian flight (shot down by IRGC) was also one of the reasons for his conviction, and his expertise in informatics, having more than one hard drive and one cellphone was introduced as other instance for his charges. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='41840'> <reference source='https://ir.voanews.com/a/families-accuse-eu-ignoring-europeans-imprisoned-in-iran/6733393.html'> Families of four European citizens incarcerated in Iran sent a letter to Josep Borrell of the European Union, accusing European countries of ignoring and neglecting their citizens in Iran. Benjamin Briere's sister in France, Kamran Ghaderi's wife in Austria, Ahmadreza Jalali's wife in Sweden, and Jamshid Sharmahd's daughter in Germany wrote the letter expressing their anger at the European Union for ignoring the plight of their loved ones. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='47100'> <reference source='https://rb.gy/4p5zlt'> In protest of the continued arrest and lack of decision in his case, Benjamin Briere went on a hunger strike. His sister told IranWire that her brother is using the hunger strike to protest against the injustice he is facing. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>
• <coverage-outsourcing id='49875'> <reference source='https://rb.gy/gxds'> In a letter to Ebrahim Raisi, the president, and Gholam Hossein Ejei, the chief of the judiciary of Iran, Benjamin Briere objected to the unfair trial procedure in his case and the opposition to his release despite his exoneration by the revolutionary court of Mashhad. </reference> </coverage-outsourcing>