Human Rights Watch: Four Journalists Sentenced to Prison, Floggings

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Iran to try Bahais for spying for Israel

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Iran rights group slams razing of 'political' graves

TEHRAN (AFP) — The rights group of Iranian Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi on Sunday condemned the destruction of a Tehran cemetery where it said executed political prisoners lay buried.
"We have recently learned that Khavaran cemetery, where the victims of the illegal massacre of political prisoners in the 1980s and especially 1988 are buried, has been destroyed by some officials," the Human Rights Defenders' Centre said in a statement.
"It appears that they sought to remove the signs of a graveyard and turn it into a park or green space.
"The Human Rights Defenders Centre condemns this ugly and appalling act and notes that everyone including the authorities is required to maintain the dignity of the dead," said the group headed by Ebadi.
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Amnsety:Iran: Human Rights in the spotlight on the 30th Anniversary of the Islamic Revolution

10 February 2009 marks the 30 year anniversary of the change in government in Iran that led to the creation of the Islamic Republic. Amnesty International is marking the date by raising its concerns over a range of human rights violations that have persisted over the past 30 years.
Previous governments appointed by the former Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi were widely regarded as corrupt and responsible for egregious human rights violations. The Islamic Republic of Iran was created following a nationwide referendum on 1 April 1979. Another referendum, in December 1979, approved the constitution and confirmed Ayatollah Khomeini as Supreme Leader.
Despite promises made by Ayatollah Khomeini that all Iranians would be free, the past 30 years have been characterised by persistent human rights violations. The vast scope and scale of those violations of the early years of the Islamic Republic did decline somewhat with time. Limited relaxation of restrictions on freedom of expression during the period of reform under former President Khatami raised hopes of a sustained improvement in the human rights situation, although the situation remained poor. However, these hopes have been firmly crushed since the accession to power of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
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