InsideofIran:
The last detailed report on the conditions of Darvish Gonabadi in Kavar, Iran.
Tuesday, 06 September 2011 11:56
dervish_shotInsideofIran – Reports from Kavar, show the presence of heavy military and security forces around the city.
Witnesses have reported “the security forces are controlling and restricting the movement of residents travelling around the city”. The city is under Martial Law.
Also in Kavar, heavy military vans with machine guns on top of them and ambulances have been parading around the city. Other Dervishes have been prohibited from entering Kavar, they have been stopped by security forces on their way to Kavar, their pictures were taken and their identity cards have been confiscated.
Dervishes weekly ceremony held in heavy security atmosphere in Kavar :
Although the Under Cover Security Forces and the Military Forces of the regime have created a hostile military and inflammatory atmosphere in the city of Kavar, Gonabadi Dervishes held their weekly ceremony with pride.
Dervishes have been arrested in Kavar:
In the late hours of Saturday 3rd of September 2011, the Undercover Military Forces started to arrest Dervishes. Without having any arrest warrant from the court, Mr Shahbaz Zareh and Amanallah Cheraghalis’ houses were raided. However, since they were not in the house at that moment, their fathers’ Mr Manocher Zareh and Hassan-Gholi Cheraghi were arrested instead of them.
In addition, on Sunday 4th of September at 5 o’clock in the morning, thirteen under cover security forces along with military soldiers, attacked Mr Abdoul Reza Arayeshs’ house, arrested him and took him to an unknown place. Eleven more dervishes were arrested in the same day.
1) Hojat Valizadeh from Kavar
2) Kazem Hussainzadeh from Savestan
3) Hojat Keshavarz from Sarvestan
4) Rahim Pour-Rosram from Kazeroun
5) Yadoullah Parsian from Nourabad
6) Ali Asghar Saeeid from Sarvestan
7) Nasroullah Haidari from Nourabad
8) Saeeid Karimai from Karaj
9) Masoud Ahmadi from Karaj
10) Amin Safari from Karaj
11) Iman Karami from Shiraz
The regime Security Forces also raided and inspected 4 other Gonabadi Dervishes’ houses from Kazem Dehghan, Gholamali Bairami, Mohammad Ai Sadeghi,Mehrdad Keshavars.
In all these attacks to Dervishes’ houses by the plain cloths security forces, personal documents and cultural instruments were confiscated.
Arrest of Gonabadi dervishes lawyers
In the early hours of Sunday 4th of September, the Governor of Kovar invited Mr Gholam Reza Shirazi (a high school teacher and an assistant professor) to his office, in order to discuss the current issues of the city and the attacks to Gonabadi Dervishes. Mr Shirazi accepted the Governors request. He, along with two of the lawyers of Gonabadi Dervishes; Amir Islami and Afshin Karampour, went to the Governors office. However when they arrived at the Governors office, they were arrested. There is no news about their situation and the place where they are kept. It must be noted that Mr Amir Islami is suffering from heart problems.
A numbers of Gonabadi Dervishes, from Sirjan and Shahre Kurd, went to visit the Dervishes who had been injured in the attacks by the under cover Security Forces in Kavar. However they were all arrested on their way to Kavar and taken to an unknown place.
The arrested Dervishes from Shahre Kurd:
Ahmad Reza Hossaini, Akbar Ahmadi, Mehdi azizi, Mohammad Mousavi, Jamal Hossaini
The arrested Dervishes from Sirjan:
Khosro Dari, Hassan Waisgholi, Houssain Assadi, Majid Motaghiyan, Hamid Pour-Rezai.
Amongst the injured Dervishes on Sunday, 4 were shot by plain cloths Security Forces. All 4 came from Sarbestan. Currently one of them is in a very critical condition.
Those injured by gun shot :
1) Ibrahim Fazli,
2) Asghar Karimi,
3) Mohammad Ali Saadi,
4) Vahid Banani (who is in critical condition )
Also Amir Housain Mohammadi and Farshad Mir-Hadi are badly injured having been beaten with baton and electric shockers. They are currently in hospital with handcuffs on. All those who have visited them in hospital have been arrested.
Names of those who visited the injured in hospital and who were arrested:
Hamid Pourreza Gholi, Khousro Dari. Majid Motaghiyan, Houssain Asadi Feraidouni, Hassan Waist Gholi, Hamid Pahrizgar, Hekmat Naderi.
In addition, in other cities of Iran, plain clothed Security Forces attacked Dervishes’ houses and arrested the dervishes. One of them is Nossrat Tabasi ,who was arrested last night in Tehran. There is no news of his whereabouts.
To summarise the attacks on Gonabadi Dervishes on Sunday 4th of September 2011:
On Monday 5th of September 1:00am, a number of plain cloths Security Forces attacked the house of one of the directors of the Majzooban Noor News Website and without having any permission from the court they arrested:
1)Hamid Moradi
2)Ali Karami
3)Reza Entesari,
4)Alireza Roushan,
5)Mehdi Osanloo,
6) Mehdi Housaini,
7) Ali Astaraki,
8) Mostafa Abdi,
9) Mehran Rahbari.
There is no news about where they have been taken.
These attacks and arrests of Dervishes in different cities and on the Majzooban Nour News Website are the continuation of the attacks on the Dervishes in Kovar.
More than 50 Dervishes have been arrested, transferred to Shiraz Police Station and are not allowed to have any visitors.
Monday 5th of September 2011
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Rahana :
Reporter Ali Reza Roshan, and a number of others from Majzooban Noor, a Gonabadi Dervish website, were arrested by intelligence forces and transferred to an undisclosed location.
Ali Reza Roushan, poet, writer and head of the book section of Shargh Newspaper, was arrested at his home and transferred to an undisclosed location. Ali Reza Roushan is a poet who has published a collection of poems called “There is no book” and his poetry has been translated into French.
Reporters at Majzooban Noor website reported that a number of their colleagues and supervisors have been arrested. The names of the arrested are Hamid Moradi Sarvestani, Reza Entesari, Alireza Roshan, Ali Karami, Mehdi Osanloo, Mehdi Hosseini, Ali Astaraki, Mostafa Abdi, and Mehran Rahbari. Despite being arrested by plainclothes officials, judiciary authorities have not shared any information regarding the whereabouts of the arrested.
This website has reported that in addition to the 9 colleagues mentioned above who were arrested in Tehran, another 2 have also been detained. They are 2 dervishes by the names of Nusrat Tabasi and Ali Moazami.
Nosrat Tabasi is a dervish who was arrested on September 4th at his home and transferred to an undisclosed location by security agents.
Prior to this there was a violent incident on Friday September 2nd in Kavar County at Fars Province where Basij forces used tear gas and opened fire on scores of dervishes from the Nematollahi Gonabadi order, resulting in many injuries.
During these clashes a large number of dervishes in the city of Kavar were arrested. Also on September 3rd several plainclothes officials raided the homes of 2 dervishes named Shahbaz Zareh and Amanollah Cheraghi without arrest warrants. When they discovered these two individuals were not home, the agents arrested their fathers, Manouchehr Zareh and Hossein Ali Cheraghi.
Majzooban Noor website reported that on Sunday September 4th, a group of dervishes from Sirjan and Kurd City who were on their way to Kavar county were arrested by plainclothes officials. The names of the arrested are Ahmad Reza Hosseini, Akbar Ahmadi, Mehdi Azizi, Mohammad Mousavi, Jamal Hosseini, Khosrow Dari, Hasan Veyes Ghali, Hossein Asadi, Majid Moteghian, and Hamid Pourreza Ghali.
Also on the early morning hours of September 4th, 13 plainclothes officials accompanied by 2 soldiers attacked the home of Abdolreza Arayesh, a member of the Nematollahi Gonabadi dervish order. The plainclothes officials detained him and transferred him to an undisclosed location after confiscating personal documents and cultural items from his home.
Also arrested were a number of Gonbadi Dervishes who were visiting relatives or had accompanied the injured from the incident at Kava, to the Rajai Shiraz Hospital. The names of those arrested are Hamid Pourreza Gholi, Khosrow Dari, Majid Moteghian, Hossein Assadi Fereidooni, Hassan Veisghali, Hamid Parhizgar and Hekmat Naderi.
All the detained Gonbadi dervishes from the Kavar county incident were transferred to the headquarters of the Shiraz security police.
Article in Persian:
http://www.rahana.org/archives/44011
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RFE/RL:
Iran’s Dervishes Come Under Attack, Again
Tuesday, 06 September 2011 06:57
Dervish RFE/RL – A number of dervishes from the Gonabadi Nematollahi order have been detained in Iran in recent days.
The arrests apparently began in the city of Kavar close to Shiraz where Sufis are reported to have come under attack from “plainclothes agents” and members of the Basij militia.
Opposition websites have reported that those who assaulted the dervishes were armed and they used tear gas.
Davood Montazeri, a lawyer member of the Gonabadi dervishes told Radio Farda that the Kavar incident took place after a cleric in Fars province, who he identified as “Shahbazi,” called on citizens to demonstrate against dervishes.
Radio Farda reports that Sufi shops were set on fire and their houses were attacked by a group of hardliners chanting “Death to American dervishes.”
Sources close to the dervishes have told Radio Farda that scores of dervishes were detained, apparently by security forces. A number are reported to have been injured.
“Majzooban121” which covers news related to the Gonabadi dervishes has posted several pictures of the injured.
Following the Kavar incident, a number of dervishes were arrested in other cities, including Tehran, the website reports.
Those arrested in the Iranian capital include at least one lawyer and several dervishes who worked with “Majzooban121.”
The website has posted the names and pictures of 11 of the detainees.
In recent years, Iranian authorities have demolished several houses of worship of dervishes in Qom, Isfahan and other cities.
Dervishes believe their growing popularity is one of the main reasons for the increased pressure.
The Nematollahi order is Iran’s largest Sufi order, with reportedly over 2 million members across the country, including major cities such as Tehran and Isfahan.
— Golnaz Esfandiari
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HRANA:
Basiji Forces Opened Fire at Gonabadi Dervishes
HRANA News Agency – Sources related to Nimatullahi Gonabadi Sufi Sect have reported that a few hours ago, Basiji Militia opened fire at the members of this sect in the capital city of Kavar County, Fars Province. The shooting lasted almost an hour until Special Forces Unit dispatched from Shiraz put an end to it.
According to a report by Majzooban Nur, Nimatullahi Gonabadi Order News Site, clashes began when Basiji Militia shot tear gas canisters and also bullets at the members of Gonabadi Sufi Sect. Basiji agents then raided houses and set stores on fire. Following the outbreak of conflicts in the Kavar County, security forces installed closed-circuit cameras in assembly halls where religious ceremonies were held and prevented the members of Gonabadi Sufi Sect to enter the city of Kavar.
This report also explains the reason for the outbreak of violence in Kavar County: Apparently, when a young Muslim seminary student distributed pamphlets and CDs amongst Basiji forces and chanted “Death to American Dervish,” militia members were incited to act against Gonabadi Sufi Sect and set dervishes’ stores ablaze.
During today’s clashes, a number of individuals on both sides of the conflict were injured. Kavar County is now under tense military and security measures.