Iranian hardline lawmaker Hamid Rasaee has been sentenced to 10 months in prison over a 2024 article accusing Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf of manipulating parliamentary documents, deepening divisions within the country’s conservative political camp.
Rasaee is reportedly the first sitting Iranian parliamentarian to be sent to prison while serving as an MP. His imprisonment has triggered sharp criticism from hardliners directed at Ghalibaf and Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, according to UK-based Iran International.
The case stems from an article published in January 2024 under the headline “Ghalibaf’s Manipulation of Parliamentary Documents” in the hardline weekly 9 Dey, where Rasaee was then managing director. He was convicted of publishing false information with the intent to cause harm.
Ghalibaf filed the complaint against Rasaee in early 2024, before Rasaee entered parliament. Because Rasaee is a cleric, the case was heard by Iran’s Special Clerical Court.
According to Mizan, the judiciary’s news agency, Rasaee was transferred on September 27 to a ward for clerics at Tehran’s Evin Prison following a final ruling by the appeals division of the Special Clerical Court.
Rasaee has described the verdict as “unlawful” and “political”, but said he would comply with the sentence and serve his prison term.
His imprisonment has prompted anger among sections of Iran’s hardline camp, with supporters accusing Ghalibaf of using the legal system to silence critics. Other conservatives, however, have rejected those accusations and defended the judicial proceedings.
The case comes as Iran’s conservative establishment remains divided over the prospect of negotiations with the United States. Rasaee’s imprisonment has brought those internal disagreements into sharper focus, exposing tensions within the political camp that forms a significant part of Iran’s ruling establishment.
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