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Nahid Taghavi
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According to a lawyer, the German-Iranian Nahid Taghavi, who lives in Cologne, has been sentenced to a long prison term for illegal political activities in Iran.
Lawyer Mostafa Nili announced on Twitter on Wednesday that the 67-year-old was sentenced to ten years for "leading an illegal group" and eight months for propaganda against the Islamic regime.
He did not explain what kind of illegal group and propaganda it was supposed to be.
According to Nili, the judgment is based on an Islamic rule that introduces repentance as a criterion for punishment.
In this case, the architect could, at the judge's discretion, hope for mitigating circumstances.
According to legal experts, this could mean a shorter prison term or even a fine.
The woman was arrested at her apartment in Tehran in October 2020 after visiting relatives in the country (read more here).
The Iranian judicial authority has not commented on the arrest or the allegations to date.
She is currently in the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran and recently contracted the coronavirus.
#FreeNahid and #FreeMama
The Iran-born architect has lived in Cologne since 1983 and has been a German citizen since 2003.
Her daughter Mariam Claren in Cologne has been trying to draw attention to the arrest of her mother with the hasthtags #FreeNahid and #FreeMama since last year.
Martin Lessenthin, spokesman for the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR), accused the Iranian judiciary of having denied Nahid T. "both consular support and adequate medical care as well as protection against corona infection".
"Your detention conditions qualify as torture!" He said on Wednesday.
The Foreign Office has so far not been able to clearly stand up for the German-Iranian.
as / dpa