Several political prisoners are on hunger strike in response to inhuman pressure by regime authorities ahead of the anniversary of the 2022 nationwide uprisings.
On September 3, the regime transferred several political prisoners from the Evin Prison in Tehran to Ghezel Hesar in Karaj. These prisoners were beaten, handcuffed, and forcibly transferred to Ghezel Hesar. Prison authorities did not allow the prisoners to take their belongings, and the prisoners’ belongings were smashed or looted in Ward 8 of Evin prison.
After the transfer to Ghezel Hesar, the prisoners were confined in two cells that are designated as quarantine cells for death row prisoners who are awaiting execution.
The cells are extremely small, with limited space for sleeping. Prisoners are forced to rest in the corridor and near the restrooms. The prisoners have been on hunger strike since being transferred to Ghezel Hesar.
In an open letter, Saeid Masouri, one of the political prisoners who was forcibly transferred to Ghezel Hesar, described the facility as a “black hole” in which the regime’s supreme leader and the head of judiciary “throw the people of this land from old to young to burn in their fire.”
According to Masouri, there is “no minimum provision for nutrition, hygiene, medical care, or even a half-meter space to sit. They pack 15 to 16 people in a room of approximately nine square meters. The prisoners have no right to even the slightest protest. There is no water, no food, and no decent human clothing.”
Also, several Sunni prisoners who were transferred from Gohardasht prison to Ghezel Hesar a few weeks ago are also on hunger strike.
In another recent development, Arman Sanghi, a political prisoner from Baneh who had been released from prison three months ago, died under suspicious circumstances on September 2. His lifeless body was discovered in the suite of his residence in Shiraz on Saturday. The regime has officially attributed his death to cardiac arrest, a common explanation in cases of political murders. But the prisoner had no history of heart disease before his arrest. Arman Sanghi had been arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence in the spring of 2021 and subsequently transferred to the notorious Kahrizak prison. He was released upon completing his two-year sentence.
In a separate event, the regime’s judiciary in Mashhad sentenced political prisoner Azam Gholami to 16 years in prison. Gholami, 35, was arrested in October 2022 and was charged with “Conspiracy against the state,” “propaganda against the regime,” and “communication with the PMOI.” She had previously been a political prisoner during the 2010s.
These events come as the regime is increasing pressure on political prisoners ahead of the anniversary of the 2022 nationwide uprising. One stark example is the mysterious death of political prisoner Javad Rouhi in Nowshahr prison on August 31.
Rouhi, a 35-year-old resident of Amol, was arrested in November 2022 during the nationwide uprising and subjected to brutal torture in custody of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC). The regime gave him three execution sentences on baseless charges of “spreading corruption on earth” and “waging war against God.” However, due to domestic and international protests, the regime could not carry out this sentence. The regime claimed that Rouhi had died of health complications. This is an excuse that the regime has used time and again to justify the murder of political prisoners.
At the same time, the regime is increasing its pressure on known sympathizers of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) and the relatives of PMOI members.
One recent example is the regime’s obstruction in the release of political prisoner Maryam Akbari Monfared, who is approaching the end of her original 15-year sentence.
In late August, regime authorities arrested Marzieh Farsi and Forough Taghipour, both being former political prisoners and relatives of PMOI members in Ashraf 3. They were both transferred to Evin prison and denied the right to contact their families. Other PMOI relatives and supporters are also under increasing persecution by regime authorities.
In a statement, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) called on the United Nations, the European Union, member states, the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the United Nations, and all human rights organizations to condemn the regime’s criminal acts against political prisoners and to urgently take action to save their lives. The NCRI also demanded the dispatch of an international investigative delegation to Iranian prisons and visit political prisoners in the presence of the Resistance’s representatives.
“The upcoming session of the United Nations General Assembly must prioritize an extraordinary review of the increasing trend of executions, torture, and arbitrary arrests, as well as the dire conditions in Iranian prisons,” the NCRI statement reads. “Silence and inaction constitute a blatant violation of fundamental and universal human rights principles in the world today.”