on Radio Farda
Released Women's Rights Activists Grateful for Radio Farda Coverage
January 2 -- During a telephone interview with Radio Farda [text in Persian], journalist and "One Million Signatures" campaign activist Maryam Hosseinkhah thanked Radio Farda for its support of their efforts against women's discrimination in Iran, especially during her recent arrest. Hosseinkhah said she believed Radio Farda's continuing coverage of the case helped her and another activist, Jelveh Javaheri, be freed from detention. The two were released from prison that day [text in English].
December 27 -- The son-in-law of Emadeddin Baghi, the jailed head of the Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights [text in Persian] told Radio Farda that Baghi is hospitalized and in critical condition. Mohammad Ghoochani said Baghi told his wife of his ill health during a phone conversation he was unable to finish.
December 27 -- A participant in an eight-day hunger strike [text in Persian] by students at Esfahan University told Radio Farda that one of his fellow strikers was taken to hospital after suffering convulsions. The striker said he and his colleagues were protesting the harassment of demonstration participants by the university's disciplinary committee.
On December 22, Radio Farda talked [text in Persian] to relatives of students held at Evin Prison and their lawyer, Nasser Zarafshan during a vigil at the prison. The relatives told Radio Farda that officials refuse to release news about the students' whereabouts and vowed they would continue their protests until they are given concrete news about their loved ones.
December 26 -- Lawyer Shirin Ebadi [audio in Persian] told Radio Farda that the family of Dr. Zahra Bani-Yaghoub, who died in late November after being detained by Iran's morality police, reports the young woman was bleeding from her nose and ears when she was buried. Ebadi said she has asked for an autopsy to determine if her skull had been broken.
January 2 -- Commenting on a joint statement by Islamic Associations at several Iranian universities condemning a 1-year prison sentence for Dr. Hessam Firouzi, the physician of jailed student activist Ahmad Batebi, an Islamic Association member told Radio Farda [audio in Persian] Firouzi acted in accordance with his moral duty as a physician by informing the media about the medical status of his patient.
Blix To Radio Farda: NIE Reduces Chance of U.S. AttackJanuary 2 -- Former chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix [audio in Persian] told Radio Farda that the recently released U.S. National Intelligence Estimate on Iran's nuclear program decreases the potential for a U.S. attack on Iran, while maintaining pressure for new sanctions.
Radio Farda, a joint project of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Voice of America (VOA),
is a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week news service.