The family of ethnic Azeri activist Abdullah Abbasi Javan says he has been held incommunicado in Tehran's Evin prison for more than two months without being charged.
Abassi Javan, an architect and university lecturer, was arrested along with nine others in the Iranian city of Rey on November 14 while celebrating the anniversary of an Azerbaijani national hero. The others detainees were later released.
Abassi Javan's brother, Yadulla Abbasi Javan, told RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service that officials will not allow him to see his brother in prison. He says his brother was badly beaten and tortured during his last arrest in 2007, and fears he is undergoing the same abuse this time.
When he was arrested in 2007, Abdullah Abbasi Javan was charged with promoting "pan-Turkism" and spreading propaganda against the regime.
Abassi Javan, an architect and university lecturer, was arrested along with nine others in the Iranian city of Rey on November 14 while celebrating the anniversary of an Azerbaijani national hero. The others detainees were later released.
Abassi Javan's brother, Yadulla Abbasi Javan, told RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service that officials will not allow him to see his brother in prison. He says his brother was badly beaten and tortured during his last arrest in 2007, and fears he is undergoing the same abuse this time.
When he was arrested in 2007, Abdullah Abbasi Javan was charged with promoting "pan-Turkism" and spreading propaganda against the regime.
