UPDATES
HOST YOUR OWN DVD PARTY FOR @FREETHEHIKERS
Apr 2nd
You can help the campaign to release Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal by showing the documentary, “Free Shane and Josh: An Urgent Plea for Compassion” in your home, place of worship, or community. It is the most comprehensive account to date of who Josh, Shane and Sarah are, what happened to them on July 31st, 2009 when they were hiking in Iraqi Kurdistan, and the on-going tragedy, injustice and heartbreak which ensued for them, their families and everyone who loves them.
Order a DVD of “Free Shane and Josh: An Urgent Plea for Compassion” and a downloadable film poster now. Your support is much appreciated.
Each DVD is $19.99 plus S&H
CNN VIDEO: #USHIKERS GO ON TRIAL
Feb 7th
REPUBLISHED FROM CNN:
U.S. hikers held in Iran go on trial
Tehran, Iran (CNN) — The trial of three U.S. hikers started Sunday in Iran, according to the office of the lawyer representing them.
Iran accuses Americans Shane Bauer, 28, Josh Fattal, 28, and Sarah Shourd, 32, of spying and trespassing.
They were detained July 31, 2009, after they allegedly strayed across an unmarked border into Iran while hiking in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
Shourd was released on bail in September 2010 because of a medical condition and immediately left the country. She has not responded to a court summons to return to stand trial, lawyer Masoud Shafii said Saturday.
Iranian authorities said she will be tried in absentia if she doesn’t appear in court.
The trial is closed to the press and the public, as is normally the case with revolutionary court proceedings. Iranian state media reported Sunday that not-guilty pleas had been entered for the three hikers.
Livia Lea Agosti, Swiss Ambassador to Iran
The Swiss ambassador to Iran, who represents American interests in the country, told CNN that Sunday’s trial will likely not continue the next day, but at a later date.
“It’s going to be soon,” Ambassador Livia Lea Agosti said, though she declined to divulge her source. “It’s not going to be another three-month wait.”
Agosti was not invited to attend the hikers’ trial but showed up anyway, she said. She was not able to enter the courtroom but she put in a request to see Bauer and Fattal, according to official IRNA news agency. The pair were present in the courtroom for the proceedings, she told CNN.
Agosti also said that Shourd’s decision not to return to Iran to stand trial was her own.
“This was Shourd’s personal decision and I don’t have any information as to why she didn’t appear for the trial,” the ambassador said, according to IRNA.
Shafii, the attorney, said he had been denied permission to see Bauer and Fattal the day before the trial began. He told CNN he has reviewed his clients’ case file and doesn’t see any evidence of a crime.
“In my opinion, they haven’t done anything wrong,” Shafii said. “The accusation of spying is baseless, and if they trespassed into Iran, it wasn’t their fault.”
Shafii said the border area where the hikers are accused of trespassing is unmarked and anyone could unwittingly cross over into Iran.
Human rights groups have condemned their arrests and their lengthy wait for a trial in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.
CNN’s Reza Sayah contributed to this report
INTERVIEW WITH #USHIKERS’ LAWYER ABOUT THEIR TRIAL
Feb 7th
REPUBLISHED FROM INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN:
American Hikers’ Laywer Unable to See Them Before Trial: I’m disappointed; The Case is Extremely Political!
Massoud Shafiee, lawyer representing the three American hikers talked to the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran about today’s trial session. “The main problem with the court was that the case review was not completed in this session. I had expected that this session would lead to a ruling, and that this would be the last trial session for the suspects; unfortunately, even though the session lasted 2-3 hours, the review was not completed. Anyhow, in answer to my objection, they promised that the next session would be in the near future,” he told the Campaign.
Asked whether he was able to see his clients and read their case files, Massoud Shafiee said: “I was able to review the case. But despite my repeated requests to see my clients, I was not allowed to do so. They were supposed to be available to me one-to-two hours before the session today, and I arrived the courts early, but they were brought to court from prison fifteen minutes after the scheduled court time, and we had to go directly into court.”
“Today I objected again to these circumstances, where I was not able to see my clients before court in order to talk to them. Judge Salavati promised to give me an extensive visit in prison. We will have to wait and see what happens,” said Massoud Shafiee.
“Fortunately, they were brought to court without handcuffs and prison uniforms. They were both wearing normal clothes. I sat next to them. They were well,” said Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer’s lawyer.
Regarding whether the two Americans were allowed to defend themselves in court, Massoud Shafiee said: “I am pleased with this. One of the reasons the court proceedings had to be extended into another session was this. All their statements were translated into Persian by a Persian translator, and then the judge’s words were translated for them into English. My clients were able to make their statements. The two of them and I did not accept the indictment and we refuted all the charges.”
Massoud Shafiee said that his request for releasing Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer on bail until court ruling was not accepted. “My whole request was that they be released on bail until the verdicts are issued, and that they stay at the Swiss Ambassador’s home at the Swiss Embassy during this time; [my request] was not accepted. Now we only want for the next session to be scheduled soon, and that I am allowed to see my clients in prison,” he said.
The lawyer told the Campaign that in today’s court session, Sarah Shourd, the other suspect in the case who was released on bail several months ago due to her illness and returned to US, was also tried. “I had asked Sarah to write her defense bill, which she dispatched to me through the Swiss Embassy, and I submitted it to the court today. And now my least request is that the other two be released as soon as possible, too,” Shafiee said.
Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer, and Josh Fattal, three American hikers were arrested on 30 January 2009 on the border of Iran and Kurdistan Iraq, and they were charged with espionage and illegal entry. On 14 September 2010, one of the three prisoners, Sarah Shourd, was released on bail of $500,000 after spending months in solitary confinement. The other two remain inside Tehran’s Evin Prison, and despite their lawyer’s efforts, they have not been granted bail orders for temporary release.
WIN A BOBCAT IN RAFFLE TO HELP FREE THE HIKERS!
Nov 8th
Shane’s father Al is raffling a Bobcat tractor to support the Free the Hikers campaign.
Description: 873G Bobcat, totally rebuilt (including engine), cab heat and air conditioning, new rims and tires, new bucket, and new turbo.
Tickets: $50 each
Drawing: Dec.4th (You don’t need to be present to win and you can win even if the hikers are free by then!)
How to enter: Send a check for $50 with your current address, made out to
Shakopee Eagles Club
220 West 2nd Ave
Shakopee, MN 55379
Don’t need a Bobcat? Even if you don’t think you could use a Bobcat, the selling price on a 873G Bobcat is around $16,000, so it will definitely be worth a $50 ticket if you win! Once your check has been received, they will mail you back a ticket stub. Please send your check with a current address so that we can assure that your stub makes it back to you. There is no limit to how many tickets you may buy so feel free to buy more than one!
For more information, see the official flyer.
CALL TO ACTION BY SARAH SHOURD: INTERNATIONAL BANNER WEEK #IBW
Oct 27th
SARAH SHOURD, RECENTLY FREED FROM EVIN PRISON IN IRAN, CALLS FOR:
INTERNATIONAL BANNER DAY FOR SHANE & JOSH—STILL IMPRISONED
Dear Friends & Supporters:
As you all know, I was freed on Sept 14th. Sadly, my fiancé Shane Bauer and my good friend Josh Fattal are still in Evin Prison. They are going to trial on Nov 6th. These are two innocent and courageous young men, held in Evin since July 31st, 2009, who did nothing wrong but hike near a border.
In the week leading up to the trial, Nov 1st thru Nov 6th, we call on our supporters worldwide to design, create and proudly display banners to FREE ALL THREE NOW. These banners, both large and small, will voice the message that they are innocent of all charges and will call for their immediate release.
We will be gathering photos of each and every banner in order to display them on the FREE THE HIKERS website and on Facebook. In addition, we ask that people post their images to Twitpic, using the hashtag: #IBW, which will identify it as being part of INTERNATIONAL BANNER WEEK on twitter. The idea is to create a groundswell of support that is visible from every corner of the real and virtual worlds.
A banner can be a bridge that can reach across social, cultural and geographical barriers. Let your banner reach past the walls of Evin Prison to Shane and Josh to bring them a message of hope and freedom.
THE CALL: Join us for International Banner Week in our plea for Iran to “FREE ALL THREE NOW”
THE WHAT:
- Design, create a banner of any size, with messages of support for Shane & Josh.
- Display, hang and/or drop your banners in the most visible place possible.
- Take a picture and document it.
- Email your photos to IBW@freethehikers.org.
THE WHEN: The first week in November, the week leading up to Shane and Josh’s unjust trial.
THE WHY: To let your message of support for these innocent young men be loud and clear and seen by the world.
THE MESSAGE:
- Shane and Josh are innocent.
- Free all three Now.
- The charges against them are outrageous.
We will be posting updates and tips here as the week goes on. Thank you again for all your support. I look forward to seeing all the creative ways you express your support for Shane and Josh.
Sincerely,
Sarah Shourd.
Here are some of our submissions so far:
LETTER FROM SARAH SHOURD TO SUPPORTERS
Oct 21st
Dear Friends & Supporters:
I came out of prison feeling frozen. I put up walls inside walls because if I stayed tender for 13 months in prison I would have exposed myself to too much pain; because there wasn’t enough beauty in a day to ward off the long, spiritual winter; because I needed them to stay sane.
More than anything I’m grateful to finally be sitting here writing about prison in the past tense.
Yet, for Shane and Josh, prison is still locked in the eternal present.
Sarah Shourd with her mother, Nora
I am one of the only people in the world that has their voices still fresh in mind. They were truly joyful to see me go free. Tightly grasping my hands in theirs they said “we believe in you, Sarah, no one is more ready and capable of jumping into the free world and fighting for us than you are.”
Free-life offers new challenges and very different obstacles than I faced in prison. I have reentered a world of fear and uncertainty…and also of great hope. Now I know first-hand what our families and all of you have been experiencing all along.
I learned patience and perseverance those long months and it’s those lessons more than anything that are serving me now.
The most important thing that I can offer you are the words of Shane and Josh. What they want to say to you, more than anything else, is “thank you.” Not even a message as basic as that has been able to fly from their lips, suspended by tender air currents and carried into your ears, for all these months.
“Thank you.”
Since the day I stepped off that plane into Muscat, Oman I’ve met with three presidents, numerous foreign ministers and ambassadors. Not one of them means any more or less to me than one of you.
I fervently believe that everyone’s efforts led to my freedom, everyone’s belief that the world contains as much goodness, and as much justice, as we create and put into motion. Not an ounce more or an ounce less.
I want this freedom, this justice for Shane and Josh, with every morsel of my being. Every breath I take, every time I open my eyes in the morning and every time I close them at night, I see them. I know them and I love them.
I want to ask you to please, look to the positive, feel the power and the strength of what you’ve done. Help us give one, last, huge push!!!
Sarah Shourd & Friends Reunite
I’ve asked the world to redouble its efforts. But what does that mean? It means do what you do best, whatever it may be. Do what you do best for Shane and Josh. We need funds for legal expenses, translation and travel. We need people to buy FREE THE HIKERS t-shirts and jewelry. We need prayers and we need action. We need more people to visit the website and sign the new petition. Make a “Free All Three” banner and hang it up in the most visible spot you can find. We need you to mobilize and be ready for the next step when it comes.
We have all been changed and continue to be changed by this experience. Thanks to all the love and support I’ve felt in the last month I’m slowing thawing out, but sometimes it feels like a glacier in there, waiting for thousands of years for just enough sun. When Josh and Shane get out they will help me figure it out. No one knows me as well as they do. When the three of us are together and free, I know we will heal.
Prison is not heaven or hell. Nothing in life made us ready for this experience, but Shane and Josh are coping. They are as strong as they need to be. They will walk out unbroken.
One of my students once said to me, “A part of me is yours forever” because I was there to help him get through a difficult time in his life. I want to say the same to all of you on behalf of myself, Shane and Josh, “A part of us is yours, forever.”
“Thank you.”
When Josh and Shane are free we will all be able to exhale collectively, pause and then ask, “Who’s next?” There are millions more lined up, waiting to get free. “What’s next?” There are countless changes that devoted, committed people like ourselves can band together and fight for. I’m looking forward to the day. I’m hoping that Shane and Josh will soon be standing with us, asking these questions and finding answers.
Sarah Shourd
SPECIAL SCREENING OF SHANE BAUER’S FILM ABOUT DARFUR
Oct 19th
Special Screening of Songs to Enemies and Deserts
Free the Hikers, in conjunction with MN Film Arts, are hosting a special screening of this documentary created by Shane Bauer and David Martinez. Songs to Enemies and Deserts is a work of art created by Shane and David about the people of Darfur and their pursuit of a peaceful community. Please join us!!
- DATE: October 23, 2010
- TIME: 1:30 PM (35 minutes in length)
- PLACE: St Anthony Main
- ADDRESS: 115 SE Main St, Minneapolis, MN 55414
- COST: $12 ($8 Students)
- FACEBOOK EVENT PAGE
- DOWNLOAD PDF FLYER
- EVENT PAGE ON MAIN FREE THE HIKERS SITE
This documentary is about an area of Sudan that is controlled by two factions of armed rebels. It is about the daily lives of the farmers and herders who live there as they interact with the rebels who try and hold the forces of the Janjaweed and the Sudanese army at bay.
INTERVIEW WITH DAVID & SHANE FOR CURRENT TV ABOUT THE FILM:
This is a short news piece that Current TV did about Songs to Enemies and Deserts. Shane is on the viewer’s right and his co-director, David Martinez is on the left.
SHANE BAUER ON MAKING THE FILM, REPUBLISHED FROM HIS WEBSITE:
Songs to Enemies and Deserts:
A Film About The Rebels Of Darfur
From the mountains of Jebel Marra in central Darfur a ragged group of rebels swept down onto Sudanese military bases in 2003, routing the government’s soldiers and making off with rifles, artillery, and vehicles. The Sudan Liberation Army had scored its first victory, and no one could predict what would follow. Instead of taking on the rebels directly, the Khartoum government sent bombers and horse mounted militias to murder and terrorize Darfuri civilians. The ensuing horrors were documented by the international news media and the world’s outcry was part of the reason that the attacks subsided, at least temporarily. With the government murdering the civilian population to quell the rebellion, the rebels became the civilians’ only protection force.
Who are these men and why did they begin fighting in the first place, and what part do they play in the ongoing situation that is Darfur? Their demands are widely supported by the civilian population: they want roads and schools, clean water, health care, and representation in their country’s despotic government, controlled by an elite that has ruled from the country’s northern region since the Sudanese gained independence from the British in 1956.
David Martinez and I wanted to understand these rebels’ world, their motivations, their histories, who they were and why they fought. We felt that in all of the attention that Darfur was getting, the Darfuri people themselves were often portrayed as abject victims, with hands outstretched, needing the west to come to their rescue. And yet here were Darfuris who had risen up against a murderous and racist regime, people who were very far from being helpless Africans.
In August 2007 we went and found them in North Darfur, lived with them for five weeks, and shot a movie about them.
ABOUT THE FILM:
Songs To Enemies And Deserts, (35 minutes), NTSC, Color, Filmed on digital video. In Arabic, Zaghawa, and English with English subtitles. Directed by David Martinez and Shane Bauer, photographed by David Martinez, edited by David Martinez, Shane Bauer, and Iona Sidi. Sound mixed by Luis Guerra, Terremoto Studios, New Mexico.
SCENE FROM THE FILM:
Our heartfelt thanks to MN Film Arts for their assistance & to all supporters of Free The Hikers!
Sarah was released September 14, 2010. Shane and Josh remain in detention.
Please show your support for our efforts to release them to their families.
ALL proceeds go to FREE THE HIKERS!
SARAH SHOURD APPEARS ON OPRAH TODAY
Sep 23rd
In her continuing efforts to help free her fiancé, Shane Bauer, and friend, Josh Fattal, Sarah has agreed to appear on Oprah today. Please watch her today on ABC!
PREVIEW OF SARAH SHOURD’S INTERVIEW ON OPRAH
An Oprah Show Exclusive: Freed Hiker Sarah Shourd’s First National Television Interview on The Oprah Winfrey Show Thursday, September 23.
CHICAGO, IL — In her first national television interview, freed hiker Sarah Shourd is speaking out about being held captive as a prisoner in Iran for 410 days, largely in solitary confinement, her pleas to end the detention of her fiancé, Shane Bauer, and their friend Josh Fattal and the events that made her recent release possible in an Oprah Show exclusive Thursday, September 23, 2010. Joined in-studio by her mother, Nora Shourd, Cindy Hickey (Shane’s mother) and Laura Fattal (Josh’s mother), the former prisoner reveals how she’s coping under the strain of being at the center of an intense international story and talks about the continued efforts to reunite her fellow hikers with their families.
SARAH SHOURD MAKES FIRST PUBLIC STATEMENT ON RETURN TO US
Sep 19th
American hiker Sarah Shourd made the following remarks at a news conference in New York today following her return to the United States. Sarah, 32, was released from detention in Iran after 410 days in solitary confinement on September 14. Her fiancé Shane Bauer and their close friend Josh Fattal, both 28, remain held in Evin Prison, Tehran. To learn more about Sarah, Shane and Josh, please visit freethehikers.org.
REMARKS BY SARAH SHOURD—SEPTEMBER 19, 2010
Welcome everyone and thank you for being here today. I want to begin by again expressing my sincere thanks to the government and religious leaders of Iran. My gratitude goes in particular to Ayatollah Khamenei and President Ahmadinejad for my compassionate release from detention.
It is my deepest hope that the world will not let this humanitarian gesture by the Iranian government and judicial branch go unrecognized. I believe this decision is a step in the right direction for all of us and, above all, for my fiancé Shane and my dear friend Josh.
Shourd said in a press conference in New York that she and her companions "committed no crime"
I will forever be grateful to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman for his untiring commitment to our case and the warmth of his people’s welcome. When I stepped out of the plane into that beautiful country the caress of the sweet, fragrant breeze was a promise—a promise Shane and Josh’s suffering too will end.
I also want to thank the American people and our government, and people and governments all around the world who have advocated for our release and supported our families for more than 13 months. Lastly, I want to extend my gratitude to our lawyer Masoud Shafii for his tireless work on our behalf and to my friend Ambassador Leu of Switzerland for her support and continued engagement.
Getting on the plane in Tehran was one of the most memorable and important moments of my life. But this is not the time to celebrate. My disappointment at not sharing that moment with Shane and Josh was crushing. And I stand before you today only one third free. That was the last thing that Josh said to me before I walked through the prison doors. Josh and Shane felt one third free at that moment and so did I.
The only thing that enabled me to cross the gulf from prison to freedom alone was the knowledge that Shane and Josh wanted with all their hearts for my suffering to end. They showed nothing but joy at my release and that more than anything is testimony to the selflessness and beauty of their spirits.
I had many concerns about my health while I was in prison. Thankfully, doctors in Oman have reassured me that I am physically well. As we say in Arabic, al-Hamdilullah, Praise be to God.
Shane and Josh do not deserve to be in prison one day longer than I was. We committed no crime and we are not spies. We in no way intended any harm to the Iranian government or its people and believe a huge misunderstanding led to our arrest and prolonged detention.
Shane, Josh and I had no knowledge of our proximity to the Iran-Iraq border when we went hiking behind the Ahmed Awa waterfall, a popular tourist site frequented by local families in Iraqi Kurdistan. If we were indeed near the Iraq-Iran border, that border was entirely unmarked and indistinguishable.
Though my friends and I never intended or chose to go to Iran, the tragedy of our imprisonment has forever marked our destinies. I never in my worst nightmare imagined that I would be a prisoner. I never saw it coming, and I never knew that my family would have to suffer like this.
I want to be clear that I do not in any way blame the Iranian people for the pain our families and friends are suffering. I found Iranians to be a diverse, generous people defined by their fervent worship of God and noble Islamic values. Like all of us, they love their families and they want to live in peace.
At the time of our arrest, Shane and I were working in the Middle East and living in Damascus, Syria. Shane is a courageous and talented international journalist and I taught English to Iraqi and Palestinian refugees, as well as Syrian nationals. Josh is an environmental teacher who arrived in Syria as our guest less than a week before our arrest after leading a study abroad program about global heath challenges.
My hope is that by learning who we are and how we came to be in this diverse and fascinating region of the world directly from my lips, it will help clear up any doubts and end Shane and Josh’s detention. I intend to talk about these issues more in the days and weeks ahead because it is time to clear up the misunderstanding that led to our imprisonment.
I also firmly believe that now is the time to make the world a little safer for everyone through peace and dialogue. I believe that our tragedy is an opportunity for Americans and Iranians to realize that an improved relationship would be in the best interest of all people. My hope is that, in our own, small way, Shane, Josh and I as individuals can help begin to build a bridge between our two disparate countries and cultures.
I walked out of prison with my spirit bruised but unbroken and I am more determined than ever that Shane and Josh—God Willing, Inshallah—will soon walk out the same way. My life begins again the day I go to pick them up, the day when all three of us can be reunited with our families with the walls of prison far behind us.
My work is cut out for me and I need all the help I can get. I ask everyone who cares about Shane and Josh’s freedom to please stand behind us and our families so that we can make this final push for their freedom together. I also ask the governments and people of the world to please help in the process of cooperation and bridge-building at this crucial time.
Please help us free Shane and Josh. Please help us create an atmosphere of goodwill in the world. Thank you.
CLICK HERE FOR PDF VERSION OF SARAH SHOURD’S STATEMENT
OMAN: NO PLANS TO FREE 2 OTHER #USHIKERS IN IRAN
Sep 17th
By ADAM SCHRECK (AP)
MUSCAT, Oman — Oman’s foreign minister said Friday he’s not aware of any plans for Iran to release two other Americans still being held there, but that his country stands willing to act as an intermediary between Tehran and Washington.
The Gulf sultanate played a key role in helping mediate the release of American Sarah Shourd from Iran on Tuesday. Two other Americans with whom she was arrested last year — Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal — are still being held in a Tehran prison on espionage charges.
Their families say Shourd’s departure from Iran gives them hope the two men might also be freed. The Americans’ mothers are calling on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to bring their sons with him when he comes to New York for the United Nations General Assembly next week.
But Oman’s foreign minister, Yusuf bin Alawai bin Abdullah, said there was no indication any deal is in the works.
“We would like to help and find ways and means to help,” he said by phone from the southern Omani city of Salalah. But he added, “at this moment there are no plans” for the other prisoners to be released.
To help secure Shourd’s release, Oman, which is considered an ally by both Washington and Tehran, played intermediary for a $500,000 bail that satisfied Iranian authorities and apparently did not violate U.S. economic sanctions on Iran.
Sarah arriving in Oman from Iran: 14 SEP 2010. (AP Photo/Sultan al-Hasani)
The 32-year-old Shourd left Tehran for Muscat aboard a royal Omani jet late Tuesday.
American and Omani officials say she has been in Oman since. She has not been seen publicly since the night of her arrival.
Bin Alawai declined to say who in Oman posted the bail payment, or even confirm whether any money changed hands.
“That was worked out,” he said, adding that “neither party wants to disclose” how the bail payment was handled.
The three Americans were detained along Iran’s border with Iraq in July 2009 and later accused of spying. Their families say the Americans were innocent hikers in the scenic mountains of Iraq’s Kurdish region and if they did stray across the border into Iran, they did so unwittingly.
Bauer and Fattal remain in Tehran’s Evin Prison and could soon face trial. Convictions on the spy charges they face could bring sentences of up to 10 years in prison.
Oman has acted as a behind-the-scenes mediator between Tehran and Washington for years, giving it a unique perspective on the two adversaries’ points of view.
The sultanate has in the past allowed the U.S. military access to air bases for refueling, logistics and storage. But it also is in close contact with nearby Iran, with which it shares control of the narrow Strait of Hormuz, through which 40 percent of the world’s oil tanker traffic passes.
Bin Alawai said he believed there are now “great possibilities” to repair relations between the United States and Iran.
To help restore ties, he urged American officials to tone down what is seen as harsh rhetoric directed at Iran.
“The rhetoric does not necessarily help. You see we have a different culture, but a common interest, in this region,” he said.
“Our policy,” he added, “is not to push our friends to confrontations.”
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
