Masoud Shafiee is an Iranian lawyer. He is best known for serving as the attorney for three American hikers that were detained in Iran from July 2009 to September 2011. His specialty is representing clients in Iran with American-linked legal problems. Since the release of the Americans, Shafiee has been briefly arrested, interrogated and had his passport confiscated by the Iranian authorities.

Detention of the American hikers

Shafiee was the legal representative for Josh Fattal, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd, three Americans that were detained by Iranian security forces in July 2009 while hiking in an unmarked border area between

Iraqi Kurdistan Iraqi Kurdistan or Southern Kurdistan ( ku, باشووری کوردستان, Başûrê Kurdistanê) refers to the Kurdish-populated part of northern Iraq. It is considered one of the four parts of "Kurdistan" in Western Asia, which also incl ...

and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. While Sarah Shourd was released in September 2010 on humanitarian grounds, Iranian authorities did not free Bauer and Fattal until a year later in September 2011. Shafiee always maintained the three were innocent despite receiving condemnation from conservative hardliners in the Iranian regime. The Iranian lawyer also criticized the

Iranian judiciary A nationwide judicial system in Iran was first implemented and established by Abdolhossein Teymourtash under Reza Shah, with further changes during the second Pahlavi era. After the 1979 overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty by the Islamic Revol ...

for denying him proper access to his clients, as required by Iranian law. Over the course of two years representing the Americans, he only met them three times: once before the start of the trial and once before each of their hearings, in February and August 2011. Each meeting was brief. Fattal and Bauer, after they were released, thanked Shafiee and others who had helped them regain their freedom. Fattal said their attorney "was never allowed to represent us properly, but he never gave up."

Arrest and interrogation

Following the release of the two remaining American hikers, Iranian security forces raided the Shafiee's home in late September 2011. They searched his apartment, seizing his files and his computer's hard drive. He was sent to Evin Prison, his clients' former location, where he was briefly questioned but eventually released. Regarding the raid, Shafiee said, "Even though they he security forceswere respectful, this act was wrong in essence." In early October 2011,

Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse (AFP) is a French international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency. AFP has regional headquarters in Nicosia, Montevideo, Hong Kong and Washington, D.C ...

reported that Shafiee was barred from leaving the country and had his

passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...

confiscated. The incident occurred when the Iranian lawyer was boarding a flight with his ultimate destination being the United States.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shafiee, Masoud Living people 21st-century Iranian lawyers Year of birth missing (living people)

Detention of the American hikers

Arrest and interrogation

See also

References