Ten detained teachers, who have been held in Saqez Central Prison since June 15, started a hunger strike on Sunday in protest of their continued illegal detention and the authorities’ failure in processing their cases.
According to the Iranian Teachers’ Trade Association, the striking teachers are, Khaled Abdollahi, Soleiman Abdi, Ahmad Ghaderi, Amanj Amini, Zahed Moradi, Esmail Reihani, Hessam Khakpour, Taher Hamedi, Mohsen Shokuhi, and Hassan Rahimian.
Iranian security forces began a new wave of arrests of teachers and educators a few days before the nationwide protest of teachers on May 1, which marks Teacher’s Day in Iran.
Security forces continued arresting teachers as the protest rallies continued in recent weeks.
A least 21 teachers were arrested last week in the city of Saqez alone while more than 100 teachers were arrested across the country.
In recent years, Iranian teachers have held numerous peaceful rallies to protest the living conditions and the regime’s failure to address their demands, but these rallies have often been repressed by security forces.
After the detained teachers went on hunger strike, a number of teachers and civil activists in the city of Saqez issued a statement condemning the unlawful detention of their colleagues, announcing that they will hold a protest rally in front of the city’s governorate building on Wednesday, June 22.
