You might remember this post: MP’s Website attacks Kamangir. Since then I have been in contact with one of the editors of the Pajamas Media. We have been working on a piece which is now posted with the title “It’s Rough Out There In the Iranian Blogosphere“.

I copy the text here for archival purposes.

It’s Rough Out There In the Iranian Blogosphere.

An Iranian student at a Canadian university has been accused by fellow bloggers of being a government agent and by the Iranian regime of being “the number one source of anti-Iran news from the Iranian blogosphere for the neo-con media.” Nonetheless, Arash Kamangir says he has no intention of stopping.

By Arash Kamangir

You can’t lose your temper in the Iranian blogosphere – and whatever you do, you mustn’t lose your sense of humor.

We Iranians generally have one of the sharpest and most resilient senses of humor that I have ever seen. Some theories relate that to the decades of oppression, during which people have only been able to use indirect methods to express themselves.

Even today, you only need to ride the bus in Tehran to hear the latest rumors about the Ayatollahs and the regime through the jokes people trade and laugh at. But if you try to move from humor to a more direct way of expressing your opinions, you’ll likely end up crossing a couple of the unspoken red lines and eventually people will start yelling at you.

A lack of free speech has basically halted constructive discussion from developing and years of dictatorship have caused massive resentment, even among the ordinary people.

What makes things worse is the fact that hundreds of thousands of Iranians have been killed during these years, some executed by the regime and some killed on the various fronts of the supposed war “to conquer Qods [Israel]“. This has made all political argument incredibly sensitive – lives have been lost for every point argued.

As a result, any successful discussion with a group of Iranians has to start with a long introduction through which one has to clearly declare his positions on key issues.

And if you dare to express your views in a public forum, it’s incredibly easy to be accused of being “on the payroll of the Islamic Republic”, “being an apologist”, or at the other end of the spectrum “a warmonger Iran-hating traitor”.

The majority of the accusations come from sincere people who are irritated by politics and political games. But then there are the the opportunists, bloggers who thrive on accusing others in order to promote their image as the “reasonable observer” – throwing horrible accusations at those who dare to speak out on sensitive issues.

I have been accused of being on the Islamic Republic payroll in the past on multiple occasions. Most of the people who made those accusations are now amongst my good blog-friends. That’s because we sat down – either virtually or in person – and talked it out. Then came the accusations of being anti-Iran activist, including charges of “involvement in a filthy plot against Iran”.

When I started blogging, on October 17th, 2004, about three years ago, my goal was to improve my English towards helping me score higher in the upcoming TOEFL exam, which I had to pass as a step in my admission to the Canadian university in which I am a graduate student. In those early days, and months, Kamangir was a lonely blog somewhere on the outskirts of the blogosphere. Soon after my wife and I came to Canada, I started writing about politics more explicitly. On February 25th, 2006, a post I had written about a blast in a shrine in Iraq attracted the attention of high-traffic bloggers. The next day, after the number of hits of my blog jumped to 600, from the steady 25 of the past year, I had mixed feelings of joy and horror.

The best move I made was on May 1st, 2007, when I started writing a Persian blog as well. As of today, according to Alexa, half the visitors of my blogs visit Persian Kamangir. I have shifted a large portion of my efforts to my Persian blog in order to have the opportunity communicating with the Iranian youth. As we discuss issues of mutual interest such as human rights and fanaticism I am able to glean a lot of information about Iran through Persian blogs, comments and emails.

The result of this communication is translated into English and published in my English blog.

My efforts to help the flow of information from the Iranian blogosphere into the English-speaking audience and media has deeply irritated those who want to build a wall of denial to hide their atrocities.

As a result, on October 27th, 2007, Alef, a website known to be owned by a high-ranking conservative Iranian MP, published a piece about my blog. The report referred to my ongoing research on the state-run media’s incomplete quote from the Norwegian Foreign Minister’s speech at the United Nations University in Tokyo.

“He claims that the sentence ‘West must be more concerned with their own arsenal, rather than pointing at Iran and North Korea’ is made up. The blogger mentions that he will follow the story with the Foreign Ministry of Norway”, wrote the author. The piece then followed with mentioning my real name accompanied by two pictures of me and describing me as “a resident of Canada whose blog is frequently referred to by the media and the warmonger neo-con blogs (including Pajamas Media and Gateway Pundit)”.

It followed, “His blog is the number one source of anti-Iran news from the Iranian blogosphere for the neo-con media. The content translated by him, regarding President’s speeches, Iranian missiles, stonings, executions, the social security project, and so on, have been enthusiastically followed by the neo-con blogging networks. During last few months, he has increased his presence in the Persian blogging atmosphere, and also Iranian social networks, in order to direct anti-Iran content.”

While public disclosure of my real name, in connection with my blog, has jeopardized my safety, it wasn’t the first time this vital information is spoken of publicly. On May 6th, 2007, another expat Iranian blogger disclosed my real identity for the first time in a post on his blog.

One of the pictures of me used in Alef’s piece is in fact a rare picture I had used in my biography in an academic journal paper related to my engineering degree. Earlier, the other blogger referred to that paper on his blog, when mentioning my real name.

I wasn’t surprised to find him accusing me of being involved in a “big filthy plot” against Iran in a Persian online community a short while after Alef’s piece came out.

In a society so politicized, it is important to pierce through the layers of confusion and look at what is happening at the core.

The fact is that Iran is rapidly deteriorating in terms of many measures of civilized life (the last one was being ranked 162 among 168 countries in terms of freedom of press, by RSF). But that’s just the tip of the iceberg — there’s the terror of the sharia police, the increasing drug use among young people, and other social problems.

In the international arena, Iran is on the verge of war because of its president’s behavior and because the Islamic Republic seems obsessed with what it calls “peaceful nuclear technology.”

In this environment I say – let’s talk with those who are willing to talk and ignore those interested in accusations and flame-throwing.

With my homeland falling apart so rapidly, losing one’s temper or getting offended by flames and throwing in the towel is the last luxury we can afford. We Iranians need to harness any tool for constructive discussion we can get our hands on, and right now, the Internet and the blogosphere is the best forum available.

Arash “Kamangir” is an Iranian graduate student living in Canada. He named his blog after the legend of a heroic archer who saves Iran.

The news was circulating the Persian media [Persian] and now has been announced by Amnesty International as a call for urgent action. Please link to the story and inform others. This has to be stopped.

Child offender Makwan Moloudzadeh, an Iranian Kurd, is believed to be at risk of imminent execution. He has reportedly been convicted of anal sex for the alleged rape of a 13-year-old boy. Makwan Moloudzadeh was aged 13 at the time of the alleged offence. His death sentence has been passed to the Office for the Implementation of Sentences and he is due to be executed in public, near his home.

…The witnesses and the two people who had pressed charges against him withdrew their claims after the trial. Under Iranian law, children (boys of up to 14.7 years) are to be flogged for homosexual acts.

… However, the judge relied on the “knowledge of the judge” to determine that penetration had taken place and that Makwan Moloudzadeh could be sentenced to death.

… During his trial, Makwan Moloudzadeh reportedly maintained his innocence. … He is reported to have gone on hunger strike for 10 days to
protest against his ill-treatment in detention. Prior to his trial and conviction, on or around 7 October 2006 Makwan Moloudzadeh was reportedly paraded through the streets of Paveh riding on a donkey, with his head shaved. People in the street shouted abuse and threw things at him. (source: Amnesty International)

As of the “knowledge of the judge”, Jafar Kiani was indeed stoned in that basis (see:Stoning WAS CARRIED OUT in Iran)

Alef, a web site which represents a major group of conservatives in the Parliament, mentioned to be run by a top-ranking MP, published a piece about Kamangir yesterday [Persian]. In the report, the author writes,

A blogger claims that Fars News and Press TV have assigned false sentences to the Norwegian Foreign Minister [referring to: Did IRNA change Norwegian Foreign Minister’s Words?]. He [the website mentions my real name] claimed that the sentence “West must be more concerned with their own arsenal, rather than pointing at Iran and North Korea” is made up. The blogger mentions that he will follow the story with the Foreign Ministry of Norway. Fars News and Press TV have not reacted to these accusations yet. This is not the first time this blogger makes similar claims.

Then, Alef publishes a pictures of the author of this blog, accompanied by my real name, and follows,

Who is he [real name]? He [real name] is a resident of Canada whose blog is frequently referred to by the media and warmonger neo-con blogs (including Pajamas Media and Gateway Pundit). His blog is the number one source for anti-Iran news from the Iranian blogosphere, for the neo-con media. The content translated by him, regarding President’s speeches, Iranian missiles, stonings, executions, the social security project [Police raid against "immodesty" and alike], and so on, have been enthusiastically followed by the neo-con blogging networks. During last few months, he has increased his presence in the Persian blogging atmosphere, and also Iranian social networks, in order to direct anti-Iran content.

Shortly after this report, an Iranian blogger who first disclosed my real name started attacking me in a Persian social network, Balatarin [Persian]. He accused me of being a part of a “big filthy plot” against Iran. This coincidence has made some people making guesses about the source of the accusations made in Alef.

The matter of fact is, among the people who read this blog, and refer to it, there are certain people whom like, or adore, the current American administration. Nevertheless, I have always tried to be objective and not take parts. The mission of this blog is to give an accurate account of the events which happen in Iran. Having said that, I happen to agree with Alef on parts of their report and I am actually very satisfied if I have been able to help the news about stonings and executions escape the borders of Iran.

This is a comment I recently wrote for The Manitoban, the University of Manitoba students’ newspaper. I should thank Michael Silicz, the editor of The Manitoban, for all his help.

An Iranian cure for an Iranian problem

The inevitable regime change in Iran and how Canada and the world can help

For a country with a double-digit inflation rate, regime change is only a matter of time. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s humiliation at Columbia University and the criticism that followed it in the Iranian government ranks was only one other sign that the group which rules the Islamic Republic is shrinking. It is a bitter fact, however, that during its 30 years in power, the Islamic Republic has successfully dissipated or humiliated any political alternative. This leaves no other appropriate option on the table, making the chance for a “velvet revolution” grim. Nevertheless, the regime is indeed under harsh and active criticism by a large group of people who do not constitute a classical opposition party.

A few months back, the Iranian judiciary announced that Jafar Kiani was to be stoned in public on charges of adultery. He and his partner were sentenced to death because they had lived together for more than 10 years after they carried out the Islamic marriage rituals without registering so. Soon the news was out that Jafar had in fact helped his wife, Mokarrameh Ebrahimi, who is still behind the bars, escape from an abusive husband who had been forcing her to sleep with strangers for money. The couple was arrested after her original husband raised charges against the couple.

In a matter of a few hours the Iranian “blogosphere” erupted. Posts shared phone numbers of government offices, and blogs invited everyone to call up and mention their disgust. The next day, the state-run media outlets carried reports about the “false mentions of a planned stoning.” It was a moment of joy and glory that unfortunately ended horribly. Only two weeks after that first announcement, judiciary officials transferred Jafar to a tiny village called Aghche-kand, in the province of Qazvin and buried him up to his waist. The next day many blogs carried pictures of the bloody stones which were used to kill him. Mokarrameh was called up to the prison administration the next day to be informed of her saviour’s fate. Nevertheless, probably because of the wave of disgust and condemnation that had followed the stoning, Larijani, the head of the Human Rights Commission in the judiciary, called the stoning “the personal decision of the judge,” although he defended stoning as a “punishment.” The tip, the pictures, and the updates about the stoning were all sent out by Persian bloggers inside Iran, but many of those who orchestrated the awareness cause were sitting in the security of their armchairs in North America and Europe.

After the first few months of shock, I have met with other Iranian students in Canada, and we have started to rethink the Sharia-based governance in Iran. The matter of fact is, the average Iranian youth is raised under the grip of the Islamic propaganda machine. As soon as they are free from the poisonous atmosphere of Islamic fanaticism, rational thinking kicks in. For many, this is through blogging, the modern means of international discussion and learning. The same people may once have considered stoning “a legitimate Sharia punishment,” but after they inhale freedom of thought they start to question. This questioning then spreads and infiltrates Iran through blogs.

If there is to be any chance for a democratic system to blossom in Iran, it has to start from the Iranian people questioning the irrational aspects of the Islamic practice that rules Iran. No smart bomb can ever target the dungeons of confusion and twisted argument that the Iranian regime has prepared itself to survive in. It is the Iranians, and only the Iranians, who can sneak into these ideological strongholds and shed some light. It is quite embarrassing, and at the same time quite common, to hear a well-educated Iranian speak of stoning, strangling, and other degrading actions as “acceptable” and “prescribed by the religion.” That’s because the chaos of the “War on Terror” has turned the focus away from the Sharia-based governance, the main source of these horrid actions, even helping it grow stronger.

Let more Iranians breathe freedom. No single Iranian has been ever involved in a suicide attack anywhere in the world. Our politicians speak of “martyrdom,” but, unless it has been to defend the motherland, no Iranian has ever reached for arms. It happens quite frequently that a person passing airport security with an Iranian passport is asked for a “random check”. Remembering the horror the 9-11 attacks caused, many of us patiently follow the orders. At the same time, many Iranians blame the inconvenience on the Islamic Republic for its financial and political generosity to terrorist groups. Persecuting average Iranians for what the regime of Iran, whose legitimacy is seriously questionable for many Iranians as it is, only serves in the favour of the Islamic Republic propaganda machine which seeks stories to prove the theory that “the West hates Muslims and/or Iranians.”

Accepting Iranian students into Canadian, American, and other universities in the developed world is the best way to help the Iranians communicate with the reality, not through the deceitful channels of the regime. These hardworking individuals not only bring creativity to their hosting countries but also act as sources to send out the message to the Iranian public that there is more to life than living under an Islamic dictatorship.

The state-run newspaper Qods reported that a mother of three is sentenced to stoning. Reportedly, the evidence is video tapes of her having sex with another person [Persian].

We have to stop this! Spread the news and send the link in the comment section. We have to stop this.

Do we want this to happen again (Very Graphic)?

p.s. I didn’t even care to translate the rest of the piece, but, as our commenter Ahwazi has correctly pointed out, the sex was obviously an act between her and a man and the man got away with 100 lashes.

Blogger are helping:

• Jim of Gateway Pundit
• WeaseleZipper of Stop the ACLU.
• Dick Stanley of The Texas Scribbler.
• John Stephenson of News Busters
• 1patriot of My word for today.
• Dr Rusty of The Jawa Report.
• Carlos of Hos Report.
• Hamid Tehrani of Global Voices Online.
• Selma of From Tehran with Love.
• Full Metal Cynic of Full Metal Cynic.
• lady vorzheva of Spanish Pundit.
• Shabba Goy of Harry’s Place.
• Crispal of In Partibus Infidelium.
• Blood Thirsty Liberal of Blood Thirsty Liberal.

Related:

• Islamic Sharia in Action (Very Graphic) (Updated)
• More Pictures from the Recent Stoning
• Islamic Republic: Stoning is not against any International Treaty
• Blood Splashes, “They Stoned Him Here”
• Jafar was stoned for helping Mokarrameh run away from a sexually-abusive man
• And more…

Last year these days, balatarin.com surfaced. Balatarin, means “the highest” in Persian, is a Digg-style Persian link-list in which users post links and vote for them. When Balatarin started its operation, the Iranian blogosphere was dominated by the semi-democratic Sobhaneh.com (see Democracy vs. Oligarchy in Iranian Blogsphere, or Balatarin vs. Sobhaneh). Balatarin has long passed Sobhaneh in terms of hit and influence (Alexa). This is not a competition between two websites, to my understanding. This is the rise of the Iranian blogosphere against the old order, and the establishment of democracy. I do not hide it, I am VERY excited about all this.

Balatarin has proved its power in postponing a stoning (1-0 for us, Or Viva Iranian Citizen Journalism) and denouncing Police brutality and carrying the message to the media (Iranian Bloggers Raid against Police Brutality), only as two examples. We are not the best (Viva Yellow-Blogging, Or Democracy Takes Off) but we are going ahead at full-speed (Balatarin Goes Higher).

When DW-World held its Best of the Blogs (BOB) contest last year, the Iranian blogosphere burst into protests against the top referee of the contest, who was no one but Hossein Derakhshan (Hoder). On October 24th, Hoder admitted on his blog that “All of [the finalists] … are selected based on my suggestion.” One of the finalists was Nikahang Kowsar. He wrote (Persian),

Please delete my name. I don’t find this contest rational. With all respect to all the people who have voted, the referee must be legitimate, but is not.

For more information read A Contest Held and Lost by DW-World. This year, DW has picked Masih Alinejad, a prominent journalist and a respectable person in the Iranian blogosphere (her Persian blog), to referee the competition.

Does this all mean anything but a totally new era in the Iranian blogosphere?

As mentioned before, Azadeh and I spent the last four days in a fantastic canoe trip. It was a good time with no Internet, and thus no execution or stoning. I have uploaded a few pictures of the trip in here. I wish to thank Ahwazi, Incognito, RoxieAmerica, Ella, Roman Kalik, Hajiwashington, Julia_1984, Mahi, Bikhanemoon, and Ghoghnoos for their nice comments.

Warning: Very Graphic.

Scenes of Islamic Sharia being carried out in Iran. I had seen parts of this in different websites but this compilation is definitely another look at the brutality of the Islamic Republic. The footage includes scenes of stoning as well as cutting off fingers with a machine and pulling an eye out. Is is very graphic. As I am sure YouTube will soon delete this video, I have downloaded it to LiveLeak too. As soon as it is approved there I’ll replace the link.

Update: The video is deleted from YouTube. Watch it on LiveLeak. For some reason I am not able to embed it here, because there is no “embed” box there. Any idea?

On the road to the village. The huge text on the hillside reads “Khameneii! We are there for you!” (also see this).

Iraj Shahbazi traveled to Aghche-kand, the village where Jafar Kiani was recently stoned to death. He writes about his conversations with the villagers about Jafar and the reason he was sentenced to stoning,

I went back to the village. While waiting for a ride to the town, a resident of the village came on his motorcycle. He insisted to give me a ride and told me about the day they stoned him. “We go to our farms for the whole day. When I came back that day, late in the evening, I heard about the stoning. No one knew in prior. They brought him and closed off the place. Then they killed him and took back his body. Everyone knows he was innocent. Because they killed him themselves. They did not tell anyone what his crime was. … Later I talked to a cab driver. He told me “I am not sure what their crime was. I have heard they kidnapped kids and took out their kidneys to sell” [the blogger tries to show that the whole stoning has been carried out so secretive that many even don't know the "crime" was adultery]. Someone else told me “I have no idea why they killed him, but they killed him brutally. He was killed by Basij members”.

The blogger believes that the administration has intentionally spread rumors about Jafar to aggreavate the calls of human right advocates. While I do not agree with him on that, and I think rumors are understandable consequences of a closed society, Iraj has managed to take pictures from the hole, where they stoned him and also the rather huge stones he was killed with. All pictures are from his blog, I have only merged them into fewer number of files. I have also tried to enhance the quality of the pictures. I warn you that bloody stone used to kill a man is not a pleasant scene.

The hole in which he was half-buried (click for more pictures).

Bloody stone used to kill Jafar (click for more pictures)

Iraj finds this bush close the stoning hole.

Title: “Enter Cautiously”, Source: Rooz. Welcome, strangling, stoning and detention.

The Islamic Republic television has just aired short pieces of a program titled “In the name of democracy”. The program features “confessions” made by Haleh Esfandiari, Kian Tajbakhsh and Ramin Jahanbegloo. BBC Persian has captured the footage. Here, you can watch the version uploaded to Youtube.

The sentences are as follows,

Tajbakhsh: To attack the Islamic world.

[Title comes] In the Name of Democracy.

Jahanbegloo: In fact, Mrs. Esfandiari and Woodrow Wilson became a new organization to

Esfandiari: The body behind the colorful revolution [refers to the Rose Revolution of Georgia]

[Title comes] In the Name of Democracy.

Jahanbegloo: To make the people loose their interest in the administration [not exact translation].

Esfandiari: In the name of dialogue

Esfandiari: In the name of strengthening women

Esfandiari: In the name of democracy

Aside from all other aims, Esfandiari’s reference to “strengthening women”, given the recent stoning and the activities of the women rights’ groups, does make me worried.

With all my sorrows, I have to announce that Kamangir has been rated PG. I do apologize for any inconvenience this might cause. Having said that, the sole body responsible for this is the Islamic Republic. Because, this rating is assigned to Kamangir for the existence of such words as “stoning”, “rape” and “suicide”, all actions or consequences of actions by the Islamic Republic.

Mohammad-Javad Larijani, former MP, is one of those Iranian politicians, who partly because of being a son of a high-ranking cleric, has always been in the administration, even though on the surface he is only an academician. His rule, in many instances, has been to theorize what the Islamic Republic does. This is how he “theorized” stoning and in particular the stoning of Jafar Kiani.

Interviewer: Dr, let me start with an explicit question. Recently, a stoning was carried out in Takistan, despite the head of the Judiciary’s opposition. What happened?

Larijani: In the of name Allah, the compassionate, the merciful. Stoning does exist in our law and it is based on Islamic Sharia. While it exists, it will be practiced. On top of that, it is not against any of our international commitments. We have signed four important international treaties on human rights, none of which is against stoning. Westerners oppose stoning based on their interpretation of these treaties. For example, they call it torture, and not punishment. Or, they question the relevance of the punishment to the committed offense. Or, they say the sentence involves humiliation. These are all impressions. So, one important fact is that stoning does exist in the Iranian law and is unquestionably based on Sharia. So, it not something which could change based on expediency. However, when it comes to its practice, stoning can be proven very hardly and is practiced very rarely. Stoning is not a revenge, it is a preventive action. So, proving that it has happened, or its practice have very specific conditions.

Interviewer: But Mr Shahroudi [the head of Judiciary] has explicitly opposed to this.

Larijani: His opposition is obviously not to the sentence itself, because it is based on Islam. He is very concerned about how this sentence is carried out. This concern, however, is not because Westerners are very cautious about this, it is because the sentence itself involves very specific concerns, like other major prosecutions.

Interviewer: So, he and you, both, were agreed that the sentence should have been carried out and your concerns were only on the way it was to be done.

Larijani: This is not about he and I, this sentence is a part of the law in this country and is a part of the Islamic Sharia. This is one very true very strong sentence.

By the way, this gentleman is the head of the human rights committee in the Judiciary.

This is the hole, now filled, in which they stoned Jafar Kiani. Source: Meydaan.

Asieh Amini went to the place where they stoned Jafar Kiani. Her account is so powerful, and horrible, that I decided to translate the rather long piece to English. Fortunately, before I managed to do so, she, or her friends in the campaign, did it. I do recommend to read the whole piece, either in Persian or in English.

I went there with no specific purpose in mind. A man named Jafar Kiani had been stoned to death last Thursday between noon and 2 p.m. in the vicinity of Takestan. I write this to transport the ambiance of that place to those who ask: “what was going on there?” or “what did you see?.

Aghche Kand is a village 7 kilometer outside Takestan. A brisk wind is blowing and the ground is dry. The foothills across Aghche Kand are yellowish….

Stones and rocks with dried up curdled blood lay around the heap. Some are splashed with blood. Some are so black and red with blood, you know right away what they were used for. Stunned, I ask, “You mean they threw these stones? These are way too big”. He shrugs his shoulders.

Thanks to Esther for the tip to the English translation.

Meydaan, the organization which played an active role in trying to save Jafar Kiani from stoning has issued another warning. This time, they are worried about the fate of his wife. Remembering last week’s stoning, this is more than just a warning.

The statement reads “on June 5, 2007, Jafar Kiani, Mokarrameh Ebrahimi’s husband, was stoned by the Police and by the local Judge, only for the people of Aghche-kand, Takistan, Ghazvin, and all other cities across Iran to realize that a person can still be buried up to his neck and be killed by stone.” Referring to the early victory against the Judiciary, which yielded a temporary cancellation of the stoning, they warn “Never before, death in a hole was so close to Iranian citizens”. “When they managed to stone Jafar Kiani, we have all the reasons to believe that they can stone Mokarrameh Ebrahim at any moment”, they add. “We ask you for help because we believe no legal change can happen without people’s will and help. Help us! What should we do to help Mokarrameh Ebrahimi?”

This is the English translation of a post by Dream Land,

Why is it that Muslims call their religion the completest Godly religion on th earth, but its practice these days is silly, brutal, and inhumane, according to common sense? Just look at execution by strangling, stoning, cutting off thieves’ hands, heritage for daughters [which is half the heritage for sons], blood money for women [which is half the blood money for men], temporary marriage, the value of women’s witness [which is half men's witness], ….

According to Dr Jamshidi, the Judiciay’s spokesman, Jafar Kiani, the stoned man, had helped Mokarrameh Ebrahimi [the name is written in different ways] run away from her abusive husband, who forced her to sleep with other men for money. Mokarrameh, who had three children at the time, met Jafar and he helped her leave her hometown, Islam Abad, and take refuge in Takistan. She privately married to Jafar, without registering the marriage. After four years, they went back to Islam Abad and were arrested following her ex-husband’s complaint. They have spent eight or eleven years in prison, according to different accounts. Jafar’s fate was decided by Judge Ashabi (اصحابی) to be stoning in Aghche-kand, a small village near Takistan, Ghazvin, on Thursday July 5th.

This is just silly.

This is the English translation of a post by Varesh. She managed to go to Aghche-kand, the village where the recent stoning took place.

I am coming back from Takistan.

I am in Takistan, just back from Aghche-kand. I talked to the villagers. They told me about the crowd of Police officers who were sent here for the stoning of Jafar Kiani. A man told me, “If the statement had come from Qazvin [the capital of the province], they would have not stoned him”. I asked him, “Which statement?” “Apparently, the Judiciary was ordered the stoning to be canceled, but they missed it”. I want to tell him how much naive he is. I have heard that the spokesman of the Judiciary has talked about “judges’ independence”. Did he not talk about the head of the Judiciary’s order to ban stoning? That no one is either sentenced to stoned or actually stoned? Jafar’s blood is still visible around the hole. There are bloody gloves here and there, used by the Police. And lots of smoked cigarettes. It is clear how much nervous the Police officers have been. Makroumeh is not doing well. She is in prison. She tried to commit suicide after she heard the news. Who can guarantee that this lady will not be stoned? Who can guarantee that the judge’s independence will not topple other guarantees? In the local Judiciary no one has anything to say.

 Jamshidi, the Judiciary’s spokesman, stated, “Twenty members of local gangs will be executed in Tehran in a few coming days. Fifteen others are receiving their verdict as well.” As of what these men have done, Jamshidi listed rape, acting against God’s rule, and homosexuality. Asked if the execution will be in public, he said “that depends on the Judiciary’s decision”. “There are other cases in other cities as well”, he added.  About the recent stoning he said, “The verdict was finalized and thus was carried out on the man. The woman ‘s sentence is still pending”. In another news, a 22-year-old man was hung up in public in Fars Province.

Just like that.

This is the English translation of a post by Another Viewpoint, regarding the recent stoning in Iran.

The Iranian Judiciary acted very thoughtfully when they stoned him (and not both of them). Obviously, all the human rights and anti-execution organizations will start condemning it. However, their main energy will be concentrated on saving her. Then, the Judiciary can cancel the stoning of the lady and proudly say “See? We are not that bad! We listen to the international concerns, especially about women.” At the same time, they have sent a message to the layers of the Iranian society who, for any reason, were looking forward to the stoning. The message would be, “We do not listen to anyone. We carry out God’s verdict.” To sum up, a man has been victimized by the power struggle. I do wish stoning is forgotten forever.

Update: More Pictures from the Recent Stoning

Jafar Kiani, the man who was sentenced to stoning, along with his partner, Makroumeh Ebrahimi, was stoned. The stoning was arranged for two weeks ago, causing huge disgust in the blogosphere which helped aware the public, something which only paused the verdict, he was stoned on Thursday. There is still no news about Makroumeh, who is still held in prison in Qazvin. One of her lawyers has stated his worries about her, “They are going to carry the verdict on her, too”. The couple have married together thirteen years ago, and have an eleven-year-old child. The judge has not accepted their marriage and has called it adultery. The news is both approved by activists (also, also, also) and by the news sources close to the reformists. Reportedly, the public hesitated from attending the stoning and thus the Police stoned the man. The stoning carried out in Aghche-kand village, in Takistan, Qazvin Province. The Judiciary is still not commenting on the news, but local sources have undoubtedly verified it (source: Roozna).

Pargas writes “witnesses inside the prison have mentioned that Makroumeh was taken to the administration offices in the prison and was told about the stoning of her partner. She is in bad conditions”. She adds “These are true news”. She writes at the end of her post, “Some reports say the stoning might have been carried out based on a personal decision. The local head of the Judiciary has been opposed to the verdict but the judge has ordered the stoning to be carried out. So, they have stoned him in private.” Reportedly, the Norwegian ambassador to Tehran is going to condemn the stoning, accompanied by other Western ambassadors in Tehran.

This is the press release issued by a prominent women’s rights group, which also issued the first warning.

Jafar Kiani Stoned on July 5, Mokarrameh Ebrahimi in Eminent Danger

Jafar Kiani was stoned in Aghche-kand, a small village near Takistan, Ghazvin, on Thursday July 5th. His partner, Mokarrameh Ebrahimi, could have a similar fate if we do not act now!

Jafar Kiani and his partner, Mokarrameh Ebrahimi, have been in prison for more than 11 years for an adulterous relationship and having two children. The couple’s children live in prison with their mother. The Stop Stoning Forever Campaign broke the news of their case on June 19 as they were scheduled to be stoned together on Thursday, June 21, 2007. After the news was spread, the Iranian judiciary officials were faced with a strong wave of national and international opposition and announced that the order of stoning would be stayed.

The people of Takistan and their parliamentary representative, Rajab Rahmani, were opposed to the execution of the sentence in Takistan which led to its carrying out in Aghche-kand.

The judge who issued the stoning sentence, Mr. Eslahi, believed that the couple’s marriage had not been legitimate based on his own “knowledge” of the case. The stoning sentences were similarly issued.

According to the Iranian law, the judge who has issued the sentence would have to be present in person to throw the first stone. Some unofficial sources have reported that only a few of the villagers participated in the stoning and the sentence was mostly carried out by the officials and the related service men.

The judiciary officials have so far neither confirmed nor denied the stoning of Jafar Kiani. Silence seems to be the current policy of some judiciary officials, including Hassan Ghasemi, the Head of Judiciary Office in Ghazvin, who has told the Stop Stoning Forever Campaign activists to contact Alireza Jamshidi, the official Iranian judiciary spokesman, for answers to their questions.

The Stop Stoning Forever Campaign is asking all citizens of the world to raise their opposition to stoning and try to save the life of Mokarrameh Ebrahimi from stoning. Please contact the Iranian officials in Tehran and Takistan, Gahzvin and/or Iranian embassy in other countries (please see the contact information below).

Background: Help! Help! Help! The stoning will take place in a few hours!

Fars news agency, which is state-run, reported this today,

The stoning verdict will not be carries out. The head of Qzvin Judiciary stated “According to an order from the head of the Judiciary, the stoning of these two individuals will not be carried out”…A source in the Judiciary mentioned “Following the issue of the stoning verdict, the planing was started. Late last night, the local head of the Judiciary gave a restrict order to stop this verdict. He has blamed the involved people for such a verdict.

Fars finishes with “Some websites and media sources had reported about the stoning, referring to a women’s activist”. That’s the Iranian blogestan showing its power. People in Balatarin started calling everywhere. The result? The stoning is canceled and the news has started to spread out. The Norwegian Foreign Minister summoned the Iranian ambassador and Amnesty International issued an appeal.

One, more, for us! :)

Women rights have issued a serious warning. The planned stoning is to be carried out in a few hours. Reportedly, people are invited to the stoning site. These are early reports and I will look for more news. Call these numbers. Spread the news. If there is a slight chance that they are really going to stone them spreading the news can help. Add 0098 to all numbers. Numbers in Tehran need an extra 21 area code.

Local Judiciary:0282 3681625

Governor:Phone:281 3682811,281 3682812,281 3682813,281 3682814,281 3682815,281 3682816,Fax:281 3682941,281 3682895

The Supreme Leader: 64412020

Head of the Judiciary: 22741002-5

Judiciary: 22741002-5

President’s Office:88825071,88825072

Update I: I Just called the Governor’s office. I was told that they have not heard the news. Still, they do need to realize that the age of stoning people is over.

Update II: The office of the head of the Judiciary denied the news as well. Let’s hope they are not lying. People from Balatarin are going to the scene to collect more news.

Update III: The alert in English. Vote for it in Digg.

Update IV: The news is verified by the administration,  the stoning is canceled.

Thursday in the morning, in Takestan, Qzvin Province, a man and a woman will be stoned in front of the city’s graveyard. The stoning will take place in public and the judge will attend the event and will throw the first stone. Makroumeh Ebrahimi (مکرمه ابراهيمي) , 43, has spent eleven years in Qzvin Prison, alongside with the man with whom she has a child. Reportedly, they have even dug a hole for the stoning. The stoning verdict is reportedly based on judge’s deduction, and not on confession, as Sharia suggests. Their child is now 11 years old and the lady has two other children. The officials have denied the reports but reputable women activists has definitely confirmed it.

The No Smoking Day seems to be in March, but, for some reason, it was celebrated in Iran yesterday. Here, school boys and girls stone a big cigar. It is a bit violent, I know, but come on there are still places where they put a girl at the middle. More pictures here.