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The indictment that was read out in court by the deputy prosecutor, accusing the defendants of “participating in the riots, acting against national security, disturbing public order and committing acts of vandalism,” cited confessions extracted from Bahari and a “spy who travelled to Israel.” It is believed this could have been a reference to Derakhshan.Derakhshan was arrested on 1 November 2008 after being summoned before a Tehran revolutionary court. Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Jean-François Julliard wrote to Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, the head of the judicial system, later that month asking him to confirm Derakhshan’s arrest and give the official reasons.

Reporters Without Borders was recently told by friends and relatives of Derakhshan that he is still being held by Revolutionary guards. A trumped-up charge of “insulting government leaders and Islam’s holy texts” seems to have been brought against him although he clearly defended not only the Islamic revolution’s principles but also President Ahmadinejad’s policies.

In a report released on 15 October, the UN secretary-general said he was “deeply troubled” by reports of excessive force, arbitrary arrests and possible torture in the suppression of protests over the disputed Iranian presidential election, and he urged the government and the opposition to peacefully resolve their differences through dialogue and le... >>>