Ali Khamenei's regime is taking revenge on doctors who came to the aid of those who have been "swarming" on the country's streets for weeks.
According to human rights groups, the arrests and death sentences are part of a "revenge campaign" after healthcare workers refused to ignore the plight of seriously injured, shot protesters and set up makeshift treatment centers.
An Iranian surgeon, Alireza Golchini, 52, from the central city of Qazvin, has been charged with “moharebeh” (war against God), which could result in the death penalty, according to the Norway-based human rights group Hengaw. The U.S. State Department called yesterday for his release.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, whose figures have been reliable during previous crackdowns, says it has verified more than 6,000 deaths and is investigating more than 17,000 other recorded deaths.
Golchini is one of at least nine doctors and healthcare volunteers arrested over the past week, human rights groups and doctors say.
According to the Norway-based Iran Human Rights Organization (IHRNGO), security forces raided makeshift medical shelters, as well as the homes of doctors and volunteers who treated injured protesters. It said it had no information yet on the whereabouts or condition of those detained.
"This appears to be a deliberate campaign of revenge against doctors and medical staff who refuse to abandon the wounded," said Hossein Raeesi, an Iranian human rights lawyer living in exile.
IHRNGO also reported the arrest of a first aid volunteer who had converted his home into a makeshift medical shelter. According to the source, he was detained on January 14 after security forces raided his home, where he had been providing care to more than 20 injured protesters, two of whom later died.
