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| Akbar Azad |
Akbar Azad, a writer and activist for Turkish language rights living in Tehran, has been sent to the city of Darreh Shahr in Ilam Province to serve a previously imposed two-year exile sentence.
According to a report from the Human Rights Activists (HRA) news agency, the renowned writer and political activist departed by bus for Darreh Shahr on Sunday.
In recent weeks, human rights defenders had reported that Azad was summoned to the enforcement office of Baharestan Court concerning his exile sentence.
Akbar Azad, along with Alireza Farshi, Behnam Sheykhi, and Hamid Manafi Nadarli, had been sentenced to two years in prison and an additional two years of exile in non-Turkish-speaking regions of the country for their activities advocating for language rights.
The HRA report notes that Akbar Azad was sent to the Greater Tehran Prison in August 2021 to serve his two-year prison sentence but was released on conditional parole due to health issues shortly afterward.
In February 2014, Akbar Azad, alongside several other activists, was detained in Baharestan, Tehran Province, while celebrating International Mother Language Day. In February 2017, the Baharestan Revolutionary Court sentenced Akbar Azad, Behnam Sheykhi Samanlou, Hamid Manafi Nadarli, and Alireza Farshi to prison terms ranging from 10 to 15 years, along with two years of exile. However, in December 2019, the Tehran Province Appeals Court reduced their sentences to two years of imprisonment and two years of exile.
Link to the original report in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Əkbər Azad 2 illik sürgün cəzasına çəkmək üçün İranın İlam vilayətinə göndərilib