Vahid Asghari

Vahid Asghari is an Iranian political prisoner, advocate for freedom of expression and a women’s rights activist. He was detained by a group of Islamic Republic Guards Corps (IRGC) commandos on May 8 2008 on his way to the Imam Khomeini International Airport because of his human rights activities and held in solitary confinement for two years without trial. He was sentenced to death twice, in 2011 and 2012, by the chairman of the 15th Chamber of the Islamic Revolutionary Court, Judge Abolqassem Salavati, without participating in the court proceedings and without the freedom to choose his own lawyer. International human rights organizations are following Asghari’s case as he remains in custody.