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Nasrin Sotoudeh

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Nasrin Sotoudeh (Persian: نسرین ستوده) is a human rights lawyer in Iran. She has represented imprisoned Iranian opposition activists and politicians following the disputed June 2009 Iranian presidential elections and prisoners sentenced to death for crimes committed when they were minors.[4] Her clients have included journalist Isa Saharkhiz, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, and Heshmat Tabarzadi.[5] She has also represented women arrested for appearing in public without a hijab, which is a punishable offense in Iran.[6] Nasrin Sotoudeh was the subject of Nasrin, a 2020 documentary filmed in secret in Iran about Sotoudeh's "ongoing battles for the rights of women, children and minorities."[7] In 2021, she was named as of Time's 100 Most Influential People in the World.[8] She was released on a medical furlough in July 2021.[9]

Nasrin Sotoudeh
نسرین ستوده
Born (1963-05-30) 30 May 1963 (age 61)
Langarud, Pahlavi Iran[1]
NationalityIranian citizenship
Alma materShahid Beheshti University
Occupation(s)Lawyer, human rights activist
Spouse
Reza Khandan
​
(m. 1995)​
Children2
Parent(s)Aghajan Sotoudeh (father)[2]
Safoura Fakhrian (mother)[3]
AwardsFreedom to Write Award (2011)
Sakharov Prize (2012)
Franz Werfel Human Rights Award (2019)
Right Livelihood Award (2020)

Life

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Sotoudeh was arrested in September 2010 on charges of spreading propaganda and conspiring to harm state security[4] and was imprisoned in solitary confinement in Evin Prison.[10] In January 2011, Iranian authorities sentenced Sotoudeh to 11 years in prison, in addition to barring her from practicing law and from leaving the country for 20 years. Later that year, an appeals court reduced her sentence to six years and her practice ban to ten years.

In June 2018, she was again arrested and, on 12 March 2019, sentenced to jail in Tehran, after being charged with several national security-related offenses. While a Tehran judge told the Islamic Republic News Agency she was imprisoned for seven years, it was reported by other sources that the maximum sentence included 10 years in prison and 148 lashes, along with six other verdicts and sentences totaling 38 years bundled together. However, the sentence was reduced later to 10 years total. She is still in Qarchak Prison as of July 2021 (see also below).[11]

Family and education

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Nasrin Sotoudeh was born in 1963 in a "religious, middle-class" Iranian family.[12] She had hoped to study philosophy in college and ranked 53rd in the Iranian national university entrance exam but lacked high enough marks to get a place and ended up studying law at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran.[13] After completing her degree in international law from the university, Sotoudeh took and passed the bar exam successfully in 1995 but had to wait another eight years to be given her permit to practice law.[12]

Sotoudeh is married to Reza Khandan. They have two children together.[14] Sotoudeh has emphasized that Reza is "truly a modern man," standing beside her and her work during her struggles.[13]

Work and activity

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Sotoudeh started her career at the Iranian Ministry of Housing legal office and, after two years, joined the legal section of the state-owned Bank Tejarat. During her tenure at the bank, she was "heavily involved with preparing the legal case and the legal arguments for many of the cases that Iran presented at The Hague" in its dispute with the United States during "the Algeria court summons there".[13]

Sotoudeh's "first work in the field of women's rights" was a diverse collection of interviews, reports, and articles for the journal Daricheh. The editor-in-chief of the publication rejected the collection, which "made Sotoudeh even more determined in her work for women's rights".[12]

In 1995 at the age of 32, she took the Bar (Kanoon Vokala) exam, earned her lawyers credentials, and became one of the most active members of the law society.[13] Sotoudeh's work has included defending abused children and mothers and working to protect abused children from returning to their abusive fathers. She believes many abusers are ill or past victims of mistreatment and need professional care and medication. She hopes that the courts will better use child specialists and psychologists in verifying abuse cases to protect innocent children better.[13]

Before her arrest, Sotoudeh represented activists and journalists such as Kourosh Zaim, Isa Saharkhiz, Heshmat Tabarzadi, Nahid Keshavarz, Parvin Ardalan, Omid Memarian, and Roya Tolouie, as well as child abuse and criminal cases.[10][13] She worked closely with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi and her Defenders of Human Rights Center.[15][16] Following Sotoudeh's arrest, Ebadi called for her release and expressed concern regarding her health. In the statement, Ebadi said, "Ms. Sotoudeh is one of the last remaining courageous human rights lawyers who has accepted all risks for defending the victims of human rights violations in Iran". Former Czech President Václav Havel and Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi, also called for Sotoudeh's release.[10]

First arrest and trial

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On 28 August 2010, Iranian authorities raided Sotoudeh's office. At the time, Sotoudeh was representing Zahra Bahrami, a Dutch-Iranian dual citizen charged with security offenses; it was unclear whether the raid was related to Bahrami.[17][18] On 4 September 2010, Iranian authorities arrested Sotoudeh on charges of spreading propaganda and conspiring to harm state security.[4] The Washington Post described the arrest as "highlighting an intensifying crackdown on lawyers who defend influential opposition politicians, activists and journalists."[16]

 
Supporters of Nasrin Sotoudeh demonstrate in The Hague, Netherlands (2012)

Amnesty International launched an urgent call for her release, designating her a prisoner of conscience and noting that she was "at risk of torture or other ill-treatment."[14] Sotoudeh, who was imprisoned in Evin Prison, was reportedly held in solitary confinement.[10]

On 9 January 2011, Iranian authorities sentenced Sotoudeh to 11 years in jail for "activities against national security" and "propaganda against the regime." Additionally, she has been barred from practicing law and leaving the country for 20 years.[19] In mid-September 2011, an appeals court reduced Nasrin Sotoudeh's prison sentence to six years; her ban from working as a lawyer was reduced to ten years.[20]

Hunger strikes

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  • On 25 September 2010, she began a hunger strike to protest being denied visits and phone calls from her family.[10][15] According to her husband, Sotoudeh ended her hunger strike four weeks later, on 23 October.[10]
  • On 17 October 2012, Sotoudeh began an indefinite hunger strike to protest new restrictions on her family visits.[21] On the 47th day of strike, her husband described her condition as:

    Now her health condition is so drastic that I don't expect her steady until our next meeting. Dizziness, impaired vision, unsteadiness in walking and low pressure are alarming signs of deterioration, besides the extreme thinness.[22]

    On 4 December 2012 Sotoudeh stopped her hunger strike after 49 days following a short visit of some parliament members at Evin prison where they acknowledged and implemented her requests on lifting her daughter's travel ban.[23]
  • On 29 August 2018, Sotoudeh began a hunger strike to protest her detention and government harassment of her family and friends.[24]

International response

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The international community widely condemned Sotoudeh's imprisonment.[20] In October 2010, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, the International Federation for Human Rights, the Iranian League for the Defence of Human Rights, the Union Internationale des Avocats and the World Organisation Against Torture joined Amnesty International in a joint statement denouncing Sotoudeh's arrest and calling for her immediate release.[5] The US condemned what it called the "unjust and harsh verdict" against Sotoudeh, and called her "a strong voice for rule of law and justice in Iran".[25] On 20 December 2010, Amnesty International held a day-long protest at the Iranian embassy in London to protest her imprisonment.[26] In January 2011, the Law Society of England and Wales also issued a call for her release.[20]

On 26 October 2012, Sotoudeh was announced as a co-winner of the Sakharov Prize of the European Parliament. She shared the award with Iranian film director Jafar Panahi.[27] European Parliament President Martin Schulz called the pair "a woman and a man who have not been bowed by fear and intimidation and who have decided to put the fate of their country before their own".[28] European Union High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton stated of the prize, "I am following the case of Nasrin Sotoudeh and other human rights defenders with great concern ... We will continue to campaign for the charges against them to be dropped. We look to Iran to respect the human rights obligations it has signed up to".[27] Human rights defender and freelance journalist William Nicholas Gomes demanded Immediate and unconditional release of Sotoudeh in August 2018.[29][30]

Release

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Sotoudeh was released on 18 September 2013 along with ten other political prisoners, including opposition leader Mohsen Aminzadeh, days before an address by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to the United Nations.[31] No explanation was given for her early release.[32]

Second arrest and sentencing

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Sotoudeh was arrested again in June 2018.[33] According to her lawyer, she was charged with espionage, dissemination of propaganda and disparaging the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei.[34] She was given a five-year imprisonment for "acting against national security".[35][36]

On 22 August 2018, 60 members of the European Parliament called on Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to forcefully work for Sotoudeh's "unconditional release."[37]

On 6 March 2019, she was convicted in absentia, after refusing to attend the trial before Tehran's Islamic Revolutionary Court because she was unable to select her counsel. She was charged with several offenses, including being a member of a human rights organization and stoking "corruption and prostitution".[38]

On 11 March, Judge Mohammad Moqiseh told the Islamic Republic News Agency she was sentenced to five years for endangering the country's security through assembly and two years for insulting Khamenei.[34]

On 12 March, Sotoudeh's husband, Reza Khandan, said that only the longest sentence of the current trial verdicts would be served, which is 10 years imprisonment (for "encouraging corruption and debauchery and providing the means"), out of a total 33 years for seven charges bundled together; this was in addition to five years for another case, bringing the total to 38 years, plus 148 lashes.[39][40][6]

On 28 July 2020, Khandan reported that Nasrin's bank accounts had been frozen on the orders of the Prosecutor's Office despite none of the charges against her being finance related.[41]

On 17 August 2020, her daughter, Mehraveh Khandan, was arrested at her home by security forces and released on bail later in the day. Iran Human Rights Director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: "The harassment is aimed at silencing Nasrin Sotoudeh, who is defending basic human rights with her hunger strike. The international community must prevent further harassment of human rights defenders by standing with Nasrin Sotoudeh.”[42]

On 20 October 2020, Sotoudeh was transferred from Evin Prison to Qarchak Prison in Varamin.[43][44]

On 7 November 2020, she was temporarily freed, having tested positive for COVID-19, then returned to Qarchak Prison on 2 December 2020.[45][46]

On 9 February 2021, her husband Reza Khandan's bank accounts were also frozen. Speaking to Iran Human Rights he said: "Arresting my daughter and freezing my bank accounts are evidence that punishments have become familial, and when they want to punish an individual, they may violate their civil rights and privacy and even have them fired, freeze their bank accounts, ban them from leaving the country, in other words, use every opportunity to put pressure on that individual or their family members."[47]

Sotoudeh was released on a five-day medical furlough on 21 July 2021.[9] However, it has been since extended indefinitely.[48]

Hunger strike

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On 11 August 2020, Nasrin went on hunger strike by publishing a letter demanding the release of political prisoners, it reads: "The appellate process, parole, suspending execution sentences and a new law intent on issuing minimum sentences were all promised, but the enforcement of all these legal rights are assigned to interrogators who apply them extrajudicially, closing the last door on political prisoners. Sotoudeh ended her hunger strike on September 26 due to deteriorating health."[49]

International response

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Before the verdict had been announced, the UN deputy high commissioner for human rights, Kate Gilmore, had been allowed to visit Sotoudeh. The visit was the first in many years by UN human rights investigators. The UN investigator on human rights in Iran, Javaid Rehman, raised Sotoudeh's case at the UN human rights council in Geneva on 11 March, saying that she had been "reportedly convicted of charges relating to her work and could face a lengthy prison sentence".[34]

The Center for Human Rights in Iran afterward criticized her conviction and said it proved that the Iranian government was sensitive to any peaceful criticism. Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director, said that the charges, ranging from membership in a human rights group to "encouraging corruption and prostitution", suggest that her detention relates partly to her defense of women who had protested the mandatory hijab.[38]

Amnesty International has condemned her sentencing and stated motives for her conviction, including her backing of women who opposed the mandatory hijab laws.[40]

Philip Luther, Middle East and North Africa Research and Advocacy Director at Amnesty said; "Jailing a human rights defender for her peaceful activities is abhorrent but the fact that the judge in Nasrin Sotoudeh’s case used his discretion to ensure that she stays locked up for more than is required under Iranian law compounds the outrageous injustice of her sentence".[50]

In April 2019, actor and activist Nazanin Boniadi was interviewed by CBC News Network anchor Natasha Fatah about female activists in Iran, including Sotoudeh. Boniadi said that Sotoudeh should be lauded and nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, and also spoke of the bad reputation of the prison, where people were regularly tortured. She also spoke of the lack of support worldwide for the ordinary people of Iran.[51]

In August 2021, a group of Democratic senators introduced a resolution condemning Iran for the unjust imprisonment of Nasrin. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, sponsored the resolution along with eight other Senate Democrats, including Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.[52]

Awards and honors

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Film appearances

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Sotoudeh makes an appearance in filmmaker Jafar Panahi's Taxi, when she sits in Panahi's car on her way to visit an imprisoned client. She is also portrayed in the 2020 film Nasrin, which focuses on her professional and personal life leading up to her second arrest in 2018.

References

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  1. ^ "Nasrin Sotoudeh, Sentenced to 11 Years, Wins PEN Freedom to Write Award", Tehran Bureau, 13 April 2011
  2. ^ وکلای نسرین ستوده از قاضی مقیسه شکایت کردند / اسناد
  3. ^ درگذشت بانو صفورا فخریان، مادر نسرین ستوده
  4. ^ a b c "Iran opposition lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh detained". BBC News. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 23 October 2010.
  5. ^ a b "Iran: Lawyers' defence work repaid with loss of freedom". Human Rights Watch. 1 October 2010. Archived from the original on 13 October 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  6. ^ a b "Nasrin Sotoudeh: Iranian human rights lawyer jailed for 38 years, say family". BBC News. 12 March 2019. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  7. ^ "'Nasrin' Review: Righting Wrongs in Iran". NYT. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Nasrin Sotoudeh: The 100 Most Influential People of 2021". Time. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Iran Releases Rights Lawyer Sotoudeh For Five-Day Health Treatment Leave". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 22 July 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d e f "Jailed Iran Lawyer 'Gets Family Visit, Ends Hunger Strike'". Radio Farda. 26 October 2010. Archived from the original on 22 October 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  11. ^ "Irans tapferste Frau". www.zdf.de (in German). Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  12. ^ a b c Azadeh Davachi (15 September 2010). "IMPRISONED – Nasrin Sotoudeh: A Mother, A Lawyer, An Activist". Payvand. Archived from the original on 12 August 2012. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Syma Sayyah (29 May 2007). "Nasrin Sotoudeh: The Ardent, Passionate and Dedicated Attorney at Law". Payvand. Archived from the original on 13 January 2013. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
  14. ^ a b "Iran: Demand Release of human rights lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh". Amnesty International. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
  15. ^ a b "Jailed Iranian opposition lawyer on hunger strike". Fox News. Associated Press. 6 October 2010. Archived from the original on 31 October 2010. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  16. ^ a b Thomas Erdbrink (16 November 2010). "Iran cracking down on lawyers who defend dissidents". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  17. ^ "Inval bij advocate Bahrami in Teheran". NRC Handelsblad (in Dutch). 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
  18. ^ Advocaat Zahra Bahrami opgepakt in Teheran (in Dutch), 7 September 2010, archived from the original on 27 September 2012, retrieved 30 January 2011
  19. ^ William Yong (10 January 2011). "Iran Sentences Human Rights Lawyer to 11 Years in Jail". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
  20. ^ a b c Saeed Kamali Dehghan (14 September 2011). "Iranian lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has jail sentence reduced". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
  21. ^ Ramin Mostaghim (18 October 2012). "Imprisoned lawyer in Iran goes on hunger strike". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  22. ^ "Irangreenvoice.com – Ăn on mỗi ngày". Irangreenvoice.com – Ăn on mỗi ngày.
  23. ^ "پس از 49 روز، نسرین ستوده بالاخره حق فرزندش را گرفت + خبر تکمیلی « سایت خبری تحلیلی کلمه". www.kaleme.com.
  24. ^ "Human rights defender Nasrin Sotoudeh on hunger strike". 20 March 2021.
  25. ^ Philip J. Crowley (10 January 2011). "Conviction of Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh". States News Service. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  26. ^ "Protest for detained solicitor". The Mirror. 21 December 2010. Archived from the original on 15 March 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  27. ^ a b c Saeed Kamali Dehghan (26 October 2012). "Nasrin Sotoudeh and director Jafar Panahi share top human rights prize". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  28. ^ "Jailed Iranians win EU prize". United Press International. 26 October 2012. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
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  32. ^ "Iran releases prominent human rights lawyer". Amnesty International. 18 September 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
  33. ^ "Prominent Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh Arrested". Iran Human Rights. 13 June 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
  34. ^ a b c "Human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh jailed 'for 38 years' in Iran". Reuters in Geneva. 11 March 2019. Retrieved 11 March 2019 – via The Guardian.
  35. ^ "IBA – IBAHRI calls for the immediate release of prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh". www.ibanet.org.
  36. ^ "'No choice': jailed Iranian lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh goes on hunger strike". Reuters in Geneva. 26 August 2018 – via www.theguardian.com.
  37. ^ "European MPs Call For Iranian Human Rights Lawyer's Release". RFE/RL. 23 August 2018.
  38. ^ a b Jon Gambrell (6 March 2019). "Iran lawyer convicted after defending women protesters". Associated Press. Retrieved 6 March 2019 – via Yahoo.
  39. ^ "Iran rights lawyer Sotoudeh to face additional 10 years in jail". France24. 12 March 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  40. ^ a b "Amnesty: Sentencing of Iran lawyer Sotoudeh 'outrageous'". Al Jazeera. 12 March 2019. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  41. ^ "Intensification of Pressure on Human Rights Defenders: Iran Authorities Freeze Nasrin Sotoudeh's Bank Accounts". Iran Human Rights. 28 July 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
  42. ^ "Escalation of Pressure on Families: Jailed Human Rights Lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh's Daughter Arrested". Iran Human Rights. 17 August 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
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  44. ^ "Nasrin Sotoudeh was transferred from Evin Prison to Qarchak Prison in Varamin (translated from Persian)". HRANA. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  45. ^ "Iran temporarily frees human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh". The Guardian. 7 November 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  46. ^ "Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh Being Returned to Gharchak Prison". Center for Human Rights in Iran. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  47. ^ "Reza Khandan's Accounts Frozen in Further Move to Pressure Wife, Nasrin Sotoudeh". Iran Human Rights. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  48. ^ "Profile: Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh". The Iran Primer. 1 February 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  49. ^ "Imprisoned Human Rights Lawyer, Nasrin Sotoudeh On Hunger Strike Demands Release of Political Prisoners". Iran Human Rights. 12 August 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  50. ^ "Iran: Shocking 33-year prison term and 148 lashes for women's rights defender Nasrin Sotoudeh". Amnesty International. 11 March 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  51. ^ "Natasha Fatah: We speak with actor & activist @NazaninBoniadi about female activists detained in Iran, the lack of support for ordinary people, and how the world has turned away". Twitter (video).
  52. ^ "Senators call for release of 'unjustly imprisoned' women in Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia - Al-Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East". www.al-monitor.com. 11 August 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  53. ^ "PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award". PEN American Center. Archived from the original on 21 October 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  54. ^ "Law School Honors Iranian Human Rights Attorney". US Federal News Service. 21 May 2011. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  55. ^ "Giuseppe Motta Medal Website". Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  56. ^ "Nasrin Sotoudeh Wins the 2018 Kurt Tucholsky PEN Award". Iran International. 30 October 2018.
  57. ^ "Thirty-three years after Nelson Mandela, Nasrin Sotoudeh (Iran) prizewinner of "Ludovic-Trarieux" Human Rights Prize 2018". www.ludovictrarieux.org.
  58. ^ "L'avocate iranienne Nasrin Sotoudeh fait partie des lauréats de l'édition 2019 du prix franco-allemand des droits de l'homme et de l'Etat de droit. Le Prix a été remis par les ambassadeurs de France et d'Allemagne en Iran, par l'intermédiaire d'un avocat, M. Saeid Dehghan". Twitter. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  59. ^ Jailed Iranian Lawyers Win Human Rights Award
  60. ^ German Judges Association (2 September 2020). "Sotoudeh Gets Human Rights Prize of German Judges Association". German Association of Judges. Archived from the original on 4 September 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  61. ^ Nove Firenze (23 September 2020). "Nel mese di ottobre le chiavi della città a Nasrin Sotoudeh". Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  62. ^ "BBC 100 Women 2020: Who is on the list this year?". BBC News. 23 November 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
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