Kurdish political prisoner Towhid Darvish, acquitted by the Iranian Supreme Court of “enmity against God” (moharebeh), will be retried on 14 May before the second branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tabriz, East Azerbaijan province.
Darvish, a 27-year-old taxi driver, was arrested in Tabriz on 29 September after he had transported passengers in his car from the city of Khoy to the city of Tabriz, which was gripped by anti-government protests at the time.
After his arrest, the security forces transferred him to a security detention centre in this city, where he was subjected to physical and psychological torture in order to make forced “confessions” regarding his alleged “participation in setting fire to the bank of Sepah”.
After the end of the interrogation period, he was transferred to Tabriz Central Prison.
In early January, Branch One of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tabriz sentenced Darvish to 10 years in exile in Ahvaz prison on charges of “enmity against God”. He was also ordered to pay 50 billion Iranian rials – nearly 120,000 USD – in damages to a bank.
In mid-March, Branch Nine of Iran’s Supreme Court acquitted Darvish of “enmity against God”, overturning the lower court’s ruling and sending the case back to the court for further investigation.
In recent days, the political prisoner was informed that his trial would take place on 14 May at Branch Two of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tabriz.
Darvish is a father of two and comes from the village of Garnavik in Khoy, West Azerbaijan province. Following an earthquake in March 2020, his family settled in the city of Khoy after their village home was destroyed in the quake.
