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  His Excellency Dr Ahmed Shaheed UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran OHCHR – Palais Wilson United Nations office at Geneva CH – 1211 Geneva 10 Switzerland   Petition to secure immediate release of Narges Mohammadi     Dear Dr Shaheed,   Following the arrest of Iranian human rights defender Narges Mohammadi, who was arrested in Tehran in May by intelligence ministry officials on charges of “crimes against national security”, Middle East Forum for Development (MEFD), a Non-Governmental Organisation based in the United Kingdom, initiated a petition which calls for her immediate and unconditional release.   The ongoing petition has so far received one thousand signatures from people across the globe, including prominent Iranian human rights activists, artists and journalists, and has been attached to this letter for your review. Here is a link to the on-line petition: Ahmed Shaheed, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran: Secure the release of Narges Mohammadi   Despite Iranian officials claiming that they “do not jail people for their opinions”, Ms Mohammadi, who has a track record in human rights activities, has been imprisoned by authorities on trumped up charges in order to have her convicted of serious offences.   On behalf of all the supporters of this petition, I request you, in your capacity as the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran, to undertake all the necessary measures which could persuade the Iranian authorities to uphold the core international human rights treaties and result in the immediate and unconditional release of Narges Mohammadi.       Yours sincerely,   Mosa Zahed Executive Director Middle East Forum for Development       Cc: Ms Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission