In a decree, Shahroudi appointed the hard-line cleric Hojjatoleslam Abbas-Ali Alizadeh, who until now was the Chief Prosecutor in Tehran Province, as the new acting deputy of the Judiciary.
Shahroudi separately designated Ali-Reza Avai, the Chief Prosecutor in Isfahan Province, to take up Alizadehs previous post.
In July of this year, Alizadeh issued a report about the abysmal state of Irans prisons. The report referred to arbitrary, long-term detentions without trial, widespread torture, rape of female prisoners and judicial chaos.
