Mostafa Nili

Age:

Activism/rights: Human rights lawyer

Status: Released

Judicial status: Released and case closed

Violations: Judicial harassment, arbitrary arrest and detention, lack of due proces, unfair trial, denial of medical care, prolonged solitary confinement

Mostafa Nili is a human rights lawyer with a history of arrests and detention dating back to 2009. He has also represented many political cases throughout the years which is evident in this report. More recently, he was one of the lawyers who went to file a complaint against the National Task Force Against Coronavirus and the Supreme Leader at the Tehran Citizen’s Rights Protection Association for their mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic on 14 August 2021. According to sources, 15 forces and two judicial officials entered the meeting and arrested all seven claimants. While four were released days later, Mostafa was one of three who were detained in the solitary confinement cells of Ward 241 of Evin Prison. Other than one short call to his family at the time of his arrest, he was denied phone calls and access to a lawyer. On 18 December 2021, Mostafa was released on bail. He was sentenced to four years imprisonment on charges of “assembly and collusion against national security” on 19 June 2022. His sentence was upheld by Branch 36 of the Appeals Court on August 16. He was arrested at Mehrabad Airport while en route to Sistan and Baluchistan province to represent protester cases on 7 November 2022. His four-year sentence was subsequently implemented and a new case opened against him. On 11 April 2023, his lawyer tweeted that Mostafa was released after Branch 21 of the Appeal Court had reduced his sentenced to two years and a fine imposed in lieu of the remainder of his sentence. A new case against him was also closed by Branch 28 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court per the public pardons.