Friday, April 29, 2016
IRANIAN CARTOONIST HADI HEIDARI FREED FROM EVIN PRISON
Iranian cartoonist Hadi Heidari has
been released from Tehran’s Erin Prison. Mr. Heidari had been
arrested by government agents on November 16, 2015, at the
offices at the reformist newspaper, Shahrvand.
The cartoonist was taken into custody after a judge ordered Hadeiri to serve
the balance of a 2013 suspended sentence stemming from a cartoon
deemed anti-state. Heidari’s November arrest came shortly after
he posted a cartoon in response to the Paris terrorist attacks which was shared around the world.
As Hadi Hadeiri was released, three other journalists were jailed in Iran on charges of “spreading
propaganda against the ruling system, conspiring against officials and
insulting authorities.” According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Iran has been one of the world’s most notarious countries for jailing journalists since
2009.