Background info: Sepideh's story

April 13, 2023: Sepideh Gholian, beaten in Evin and charged with "insult", refuses to participate in "illegitimate" trial

March 17, 2023: Press Release "Free Sepideh Gholian"

"Free Sepideh Gholian" Press Release PDF to print and distribute

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Excerpt from: "New charges filed", Oct 2022

Sepideh’s Story – the Horrors of Iran’s Islamic Republic – and the Courage of Its Political Prisoners

Sepideh’s story offers a window into the horrors of Iran’s Islamic Republic and the enormous courage and heroism of many of its political prisoners – prisoners who must be freed now!

In a country where women are forcibly veiled, often covered in black cloth from head to toe, where showing a patch of hair is considered the crime of supposedly “tempting men”, she smiles proudly from under her blue, red, green, blond or sometimes multi-colored hair, and she has a preference for flowery-print clothing.

Sepideh was first arrested in November 2018, when she was 23 years old and was reporting on the workers’ struggle at a Khuzestan sugarcane factory.  She was brutally tortured for 30 days along with her fellow activist who was arrested with her, Esmail Bakhshi. She noted at one point, she noted that her body was “covered with bruises”.  She was sentenced to 19 ½ years, later reduced to 5 years.

In the face of this brutality, she has continued to use her sharp pen and even sharper voice to expose the criminality of Iran’s theocratic regime. She advocates for freedom for all Iran’s political prisoners, and staunchly opposes the savage oppression of women, labor activists and minorities such as Sunni Arabs (Iran’s theocracy is Shiite).

In late 2019, she released an audio message from Gharchak prison published by IranWire. Here are some excerpts:

…after days of back-to-back interrogations…[t]hey left me in the interrogation room for 16 hours where I could hear the sounds of them torturing a human being they called “Esmail” from the next room...I cannot stop hearing the sound of torture…women are arrested and sent to Gharchak Prison for eating ice cream on the charge of “spreading corruption and prostitution through eating ice cream on the street!”...they arrest women on the street and charge them with “prostitution through walking or standing in walkways at unusual times!”…because of their hair color or how they are dressed….Listen to my voice….This voice is the voice of somebody who has been sentenced to 19 years and six months [in prison] and who now is not about freedom and equality for herself….She demands an end to the dark days and nights…

Sepideh has written a 19-part prison memoir “Tilapia Sucks the Blood of Hur al-Azim” which some have called “a damning indictment” of Iran’s regime and “a call to arms.”

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Excerpt from "URGENT! Sepideh Gholian Must Be Freed on Medical Release NOW!", March 2022

On March 10, Center for Human Rights in Iran issued an urgent press release about their letter calling on the UN to intervene for the immediate release of Sepideh Gholian “…before another prisoner of conscience is silenced forever in an Iranian prison.”

Their alert is not hyperbolic as it comes just two months after the regime’s cruel murder of Baktash Abtin by medical neglect.

On March 6, Sepideh’s family issued an urgent cry for help to get her released. The letter begins with these chilling words, “We want to explain the situation briefly and clearly: It is enough to say in one sentence that Sepideh Gholian's life is in imminent danger.”

They tell us she had contracted Covid and was in such weak physical condition due to “prison transfers, her hunger strikes, the constant pressure of the past few years, plus untreated chronic conditions – such that even a cold can overwhelm her” (i.e., kill her). READ the full text of their letter....

What is being done to OUR youth, OUR future, our Dawn?

On October 11, 2021, Sepideh was brutally (re)arrested by 30 plainclothes thugs ofIran’s Islamic regime while she was out on medical leave from prison and at her sister’s home. She was taken to and held in Tehran’s Evin prison where she had previously been threatened with being raped and murdered.

Before her arrest that day, she concluded a series of tweets, writing, “I wonder what they’ve done to my youth. But the struggle continues. The streets of Khuzestan and Mahshahr, the killing of 1,500 people in November 2019, and 43 years of secret executions show that the struggle continues, no matter how much they suffocate and kill.”

The struggle continues, but it needs to be fought with an aim to win. Read her story and mobilize others to sign our Campaign’s Emergency Appeal, in which her case is highlighted. Join with journalists, human and women’s rights organizations, academics, and ordinary people on the streets to demand – with greater intensity – her immediate medical release. Find ways to make her known on your campus, on social media, among your social circle, and in social justice organizations as a real life people’s journalist, an unapologetic voice of the voiceless.

Courageous voices of youth such as Sepideh Gholian must not be “forever silenced” by the Islamic theocrats. A particular challenge now is to take the campaign to THIS generation as part of the fight to free ALL Iran’s political prisoners, including making Sepideh Gholian known on the campuses and among the youth. The challenge should be to say her name AND to emulate her example of impeccable, enduring courage.

The release of a number of political and ideological prisoners as well as recent detainees is one of the results of the "Women, Life, Freedom" movement. However, there are other innocent people still in prisons because of the opinions of the bailiffs (interrogators) as well as the judicial-security authorities. There are many innocent people who are still in prisons, under inhumane and unjust treatments due to authoritarian government policies and power struggles {amongst them}. Among environmental activists who lovingly and compassionately served to preserve the environment of our country in the most remote parts of the country and have given their hearts for our land.

While all the observers have acknowledged that the cases against these environmentalists are made up, the countless cases of human rights violations do not end/stop here in these made up charges . Some of them are as follow:

Two years of detention in the security cells of the IRGC and eight months of solitary confinement, interrogations under torture and severe mental and psychological pressure, being under physical torture, falsification, slander, threats, intimidation, trickery and deception, insults and threats and sexual harassment, threatening to inject air and paralyzing ampoules/needles, distorting the accused's writings, showing photos and videos of Kavous Seyed Emami* and interrogating the accused's sister and father... making frightening noises and banging on chairs and walls, sending him meeting his wife with blood-stained clothes and torn lips,...lack of access to the case until the court day, because of it being classified as confidential and high security, lack of access to a lawyer until court hearings, having no knowledge of the charges/indictment till the court date, the judge insulting the defendants and expelling them from the trial session and the court, without announcing the verdict and finally, deprivation of parole, leave/furlough that are directives issued by the judiciary.

Therefore, according to the proceedings and the issuing of rulings that are even against the laws of the government, these verdicts are basically invalid and lack legal validity.

We, the cellmates and signatories of this letter, regardless of our political and ideological differences, are united in insisting on the standards and principles of human rights and we believe that the freedom of Iranian environmental activists and experts; Sepideh Kashani, Nilofar Bayani, Homan Jokar, Sam Rajabi, Morad Tahbaz, Amir Hossein Khaleghi, Taher Qadirian and all the innocents imprisoned in prisons are essential. Even after  their release, the suffering and nightmare that has cast a shadow on their lives, their families, and the Iranian society will not be compensated.

[Signed]

Narges Mohammadi, Nahid Tagavi, Zahra Zehtabchi, Fatemeh Mothni, Mahvash Shahriari, Fariba Kamalabadi, Sepideh Qolian, Bahareh Hedayat, Faezeh Hashemi, Golrokh Iraei, Vida Rabbani, Shakila Monfared, Alieh Motlabzadeh, Noushin Jafari, Hasti Amiri, Raha Asgarizadeh, Zila Makundi, Maleeha Jafari, Golareh Abbasi, Bahareh Soleimani.

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[*Kavous Seyyed Emami was an environmental activist, a Doctor in Sociology and a Professor at Emam Sadegh University. He was arrested during the round-up of environmental activists in February 2018, and died two days later under suspicious circumstances in Evin Prison. The Iranian regime has declared the cause of his death to be suicide.]

Since we have been released we are awaiting the release of the other cellmate prisoners. Including Sepideh Kashani and Niluofar Bayani whose stories are heard by everyone by now, and the oppression they have gone through in the past 5 years. They are among the noblest people of this land, who during these years have paid for their love and protection of the nature of this land through prison and torture.

What is very impressive and remarkable is the composition and social base of the prisoners. The number of prisoners includes women's activists, teachers, students, workers, sociologists, university professors, lawyers, journalists, cinematographers, athletes, writers, artists, New Christian converts, dervishes, relatives, social justice activists, Baha'i community and environmental activists, etc. This social expansion shows the astonishing extent of the government's dealings with the people of Iran, as well as the resistance of the people in different classes and strata.

With the continuation of your support, the people, and the efforts and persistence of the international community, we will soon see the release of all political prisoners, men and women, and our fellow prisoners in Evin, and other prisons. Including:

#Narges_ Mohammadi, #Nahid_Taghavi, #Maryam_Hajihasani, #Fatemeh _Mosna, #Zahra_Zehtabchi, #Sapideh_Qalyan, #Mahvash_Shahriari, #Fareba_Kamalabadi, #Bahareh_Hedayt, #Faeze_Hashmi, #Golrukh_Iraei, #Thamin_Ehsani, #Akram_Nasiriyan, #Nasrin_Javadi, #Masoumeh_Nasaji. #Maliha_Nazari, #Sara_Ahmadi, #Niloufer_Bayani, #Sapideh_Kashani, #Mariam_AkbariManjalfard, #Zinab_Jalalian, #Saha_Mortazaei and...

Freedom Day is near.

Written by:
#Alieh_Motaleb_zadeh
#Raha_Askari
#Nooshin_Jafari
#Maliheh_Jafari
#Hasti_Amiri
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Break down the prison walls
Political Prisoners must be freed!

On July 20 of this year, in protest against the arrest of two of our beloved colleagues, Mr. Mohammad Rasulof and Mostafa Al-Ahmad, together with a group of filmmakers gathered in front of Evin prison, and it was decided that a number of us and the lawyers of the detained colleagues entered the Evin courthouse and peacefully. We were talking with the relevant authorities and the relevant investigator when an agent came and took me to the judge of branch 1 of Evin’s sentence enforcement. The young judge said without introduction: “We were looking for you in the skies, we found you here.”

You are under arrest!” In this way, I was arrested and transferred to Evin prison for the execution of a sentence that had been issued for eleven years. According to the law for which I was arrested in 1988, after more than ten years of non-execution of a [sentence] the sentence is subject to the passage of time and becomes unenforceable. Therefore, this arrest was more like banditry and hostage-taking than the execution of a judicial sentence.

Even though my arrest was illegal, the respected lawyers succeeded in violating the ruling issued in 1990 by resuming the proceedings in the Supreme Court, which is the highest authority for judicial cases, on the 15 October 2022 of this year, so that they can go to the same branch for retrial. Width to be referred. In this way, according to the law, with the acceptance of the request for retrial and violation of the verdict, the case was referred to the branch and I should have been released immediately by issuing bail; While we have seen that it takes less than thirty days from the time of arrest to the hanging of the innocent youth of our country, it took more than a hundred days to transfer my case to the branch with the intervention of security forces.

According to the clarity of the law in cases of violation of the sentence in the Supreme Court, the judge of the same branch was obliged to release me by issuing a bail order as soon as the case was referred to that branch, however, by issuing a heavy bail order, in practice after months of detention Legally, I was still kept in prison with repeated excuses and every day by the security agencies.

What is certain is that the behavior of the bully and extra-legal security institution and the unquestioning surrender of the judicial authorities once again show the implementation of selective and tasteful laws.

It is only an excuse for repression. Even though I knew that the judicial system and the security institutions have no will to implement the law (which they insist on), but out of respect for my lawyers and friends, I went through all the legal ways to get my right. Today, like many people trapped in Iran, I have no choice but to protest against these inhumane behaviors with my dearest possession, that is, my life.

Therefore, I firmly declare that in protest against the extra-legal and inhumane behavior of the judicial and security apparatus and this particular hostage-taking, I have started a hunger strike since the morning of the 12th of Bahman, and I will refuse to eat and drink any food and medicine until the time of my release. I will remain in this state until perhaps my lifeless body is freed from prison.

With love for Iran and the people of my land, Jafar Panahi

I talked to 25 people around me about this. 25 women with an average age of 45 years, each of whom was or is active in one of the political and social spheres. I ask them if the COVID epidemic has had an effect on the relationship between man and nature? The result is unbelievable. I quickly realized that basically the problem is something else. It is not whether man has learned a lesson from mistreatment of nature, that severe destruction of nature will eventually affect him or not! Rather, what has changed is people's view of man's wrestling against nature.

It seems that the globalization of COVID has reinforced the power of human technology over natural forces more than before. It is true that the possibility of the virus being man-made in a human laboratory has not been completely ruled out and many scientists are still not convinced by China's answers about the origin of this virus, but what is interesting is that 17 out of the same 25 people believe that the coronavirus was completely man-made. What is woven into the fabric of the belief in the laboratory origin of this emerging virus is the power of man and his advanced technology. That by engineering a small virus, man can destroy everything and rebuild it, change economic and social relations and cleanse the earth's population so that future generations will be safe from the weakness of the victims of the virus.

There are many conspiracy theories among them: this [should sound] an alarm. Everything starts from man and ends with man in a space devoid of any other force. I ask myself, what about other virus epidemics that have killed many times in human history? Why must this time be the villain behind the story? And will the same hypotheses be raised for monkey pox and Crimean- Congo fever? There is also this image that the process of evolution is now progressing in human laboratories, and in the era of human rule over other species (Anthropocene), human decisions have replaced the laws of nature through technology. Human-centeredness is so fixed in our thinking that nature is more and more removed from the scene of our minds.

We all have the right to raise our hypotheses and look for answers. I recently read a book that examined the coronavirus conspiracy theories and provided scientific answers for each one: "Planet of Viruses" written by Carl Zimmer, translated and updated by Kave Faiz Elahi. This book, which looks at history from the perspective of these small creatures, is a good guide for a better understanding of viral epidemics and its long history. As stated in the translator's introduction, while humans appeared on the earth only 300,000 years ago, "Viruses have been present on this planet nearly four billion years before the newly arrived humans and have complete control over all the details of life in it." They are even present in the human genome. The DNA of each of us contains approximately 100,000 pieces of DNA inserted by retroviruses from the HIV group, to the extent that some of our body's functions are dependent on these viral DNA strands. (For example, some viral proteins play a role in embryo formation.)

We humans are disturbing the balance in the last untouched places of this planet. We have left no room for other forms of life. We destroy their habitats, we eat all kinds of animals and plants, algae and bacteria, we treat wildlife as a human-managed zoo. We are changing the climate of the earth, we are separating domestic animals from nature, and we are cramming thousands upon thousands of them together in livestock farms, poultry farms, and huge industrial pools, and by doing this, we are creating an environment where viruses can mix well and new types and strains appear. We buy and sell wild animals along with all their pathogens in our markets.

Our air, ground, rail, and shipping routes are so vast and complex that we provide a route that a virus could not imagine for millions of years, to cross in a few hours. We have turned ourselves and our domestic animals into the feathers and feet of diseases and we carry them around the globe in our bodies.

We are not even honest with ourselves. Some of us still depend on hunting wild animals for protein, and some of us are cursing the first group that caused the transmission of the disease that the quarantine has disrupted our trips to the seashore. We consider ourselves so separate from nature that we forget that many of our diseases are shared with other animals: influenza came to us from birds; HIV from our closest relatives, gorillas and chimpanzees; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) from camels and measles from cows. We are almost certain that the coronavirus, i.e. SARS-COV-2, has spread from bats to a mammal species, i.e. dog or pangolin, and then to humans. Most of our viruses can also infect birds and infect other mammals. When we want everything from nature for ourselves, we also take the diseases of other creatures. More precisely, we make ourselves of those viruses, etc., so that they can be spread all over the world through us.

As long as we interfere in the natural course and life of animals and other living beings and selfishly make them a part of our lives, we have to expect more and more new diseases and pandemics. If the way humans deal with nature does not change, maybe the new century will be the century of nature's revenge on humans.

Now that I am in prison, I am forced, and with great regret, to spend my imprisonment with Reza Pahlavi's supporters and their monarchist attitude and views. It doesn't matter if they call themselves "royalists", "constitutionalists" or any other name. What is important is the nature and content of their thoughts and viewpoints.

With great certainty I could say that some of them are among the most immoral, unprincipled and uneducated {ignorant} people, present in the women's political ward of Evin prison. One of the rules of the women's section/ward is that it is forbidden to insult and humiliate the political orientation and opinions of others. But this law has been violated time and time again by these people. They easily attack the intellectual orientation and identity of others with rude and insulting nasty words. It might not be bad to mention a few examples of here:

Pahlavi supporters believe that all those who fought during Pahlavi's era and were political activists (regardless of their {political} orientation) were terrorists and murderers, and they constantly use these {exact} words. Were- (Marzieh Ahmadi Eskoui, Mehrnoosh Ebrahimi, Masoume Tawafchian, Khosro Golsarkhi, Karamat Daneshian, Saeed Sultanpour, etc.,{these are ex-prisoners under the Shah, and most were executed by his regime and Saeed Sultanpour was executed by IRI, captured in his wedding night} who lost their dear lives for the liberation and well-being of the people in the their fight against the fascist Pahlavi regime) -terrorists?

I wish these so-called high on horses of political activism and die hard fans of the Pahlavi era would read a little, to know that Saeed Sultanpour, the popular poet and eternal songwriter of "Aftabkaran Jangle", {those who spread the seeds of Sun in the forest/jungle} when he was arrested by the Shah's dreaded security organization and imprisoned, one of his accusations/crimes was reading the book of " The Mother" by Maxim Gorky. They should know that the printing and selling of Marxist books was prohibited and carrying these books was punishable by imprisonment. {people were reading this book in secret}

From their point of view, {Ahmad}Shamlo, the great poet and freedom lover, is an apostate and a traitor. Why? Because he was a progressive individual and { amongst other things} wrote poetry for freedom fighters and those who were executed under the Pahlavi era. These people believe that Evin prison was built by Mohammad Reza Pahlavi for terrorists and that was correct to do so, and they consider themselves to be the righteous owner, decedent and inheritor of this land!

They defend the regime that, its Savak goons {Organization of Information and Security of the Country, OISC} tortured many lives in this same Evin prison and tore their bodies into pieces and gunned these steadfast cedars(stood upright like cedar trees in the forest) down, on the same hills where our eyes opens to it every morning. Was the generation of our fathers and mothers, who were fighters both before and after the 1979 revolution, and those who were imprisoned and tortured under both regimes, were they terrorists?

If opposing and fighting against fascist governments (with any political orientation and viewpoint and for any reason, whether social, political, cultural, etc.) is terrorism, then the Pahlavi supporters, should not defend the protesters of Jan 2017, and November 2019, and autumn of 2022, because according to this point of view, they could be {put under the same category of } terrorists. One should not approach political events absurdly and opportunistically. Wherever it is beneficial for them, that these protestors become children of the country and wherever it is harmful for them, the protesters become terrorists.

Another of their most immoral and inhumane behaviors is insulting and attacking Afghanistani immigrants and their identity. This backward and deeply reactionary political trend often reveals its racist view by using the words like "Afghani dog", "Ridiculous Afghani ", and {saying these words to immigrants} "If you were caught by the Taliban, they would have cut you in to pieces and the Islamic Republic has been very kind to you thus far". Whenever they face the opposition and protests of others against {these behaviors} themselves that warn them these are fascistic approaches, they proudly admit that yes, we are fascists and proud of it! These reactions are neither out of anger nor stubbornness towards those who oppose them. {Through this they reveal exactly who they are}

They really are fascists. Those who, in front of the television, rejoice and get excited at the growth of Neo-Nazis in other countries; those who admire Hitler because he considered the Aryan race to be the superior race. After more than three quarters of a century since the decline of Hitler's fascism, it is still taboo for the majority of German people to mention Hitler, but in Iran it is a historical myth for this spectrum. The first book these people read is Hitler's absurd "Mein Kampf" book, which for them has the authority of the Bible.

These fans of the superiority of the Aryan race do not know that if they get caught by the German Neo-Nazis, their " superior Aryan gene" would not save {their ass} them and they may be burned alive. To love your country is a natural feeling that every human being can have towards their country and hometown. But patriotism, which means that you consider your homeland "The country full of gems" {Iranian nationalists regard Iran as a country made of precious gems...) as superior to others and believe in national, ethnic and racial superiority, is equal to chauvinism and leads to racist and fascist views.

Another case that recently revealed another part of the real face/nature of these royalists, was after chanting the slogan "Death to three evildoers, mullahs, leftists, hypocrites" by the supporters of this spectrum in London. Some of the royalists supporters of these chants in the women's ward said that these three {categories of} criminals deserve revenge/ to be killed (that is, we leftists and supporters of the Mojahedin organization). Why? Because we are against them.

The legendary heroes,of these monarchists, are of such “Shaaban Bimukh'' {Shaaban with no brain}, who during the Pahlavi era along with his goons and thugs attacked popular protests and opponents of the Pahlavi regime and crushed them {During the Coup 53}. The same Shaaban Bimokh whom the fans of monarchy proudly refer to as Shaaban Jafari ``Tajbakhsh" { one who saved the crown} A nickname that the king/shah gave to a lumpen like him. It is better that Mr. Pahlavi {Reza his son} does not pretend/pose as a democratic element, and stops delivering demagogic words. Me and my cellmates experience with Pahlavi fans, the real concentration of the viewpoints of their intense attitude, morals and behaviors every day.

The last word is that history will never go back. We will fight to the end and we will not allow the {return of} experience and repetition of oppression, destruction and tyranny. We should not choose between bad and worse. When you choose bad, you are actually choosing the worst. {When you are forced to choose between bad and worse, that's not a choice at all!}

Bahareh Soleimani, a political prisoner

Women's ward of Evin prison

Jan 22 2023

The government's brutal and widespread crackdown across the country has caused the spread of powerful street protests in recent days, and instead of retreating from street killings and repression, the government has pushed ahead and begun executions to spread fear. The execution of those who stood shoulder to shoulder in the streets. The execution of Mohsen Shekari as a street protester was a flagrant crime that stunned the world.

In keeping with the covenant in our hearts, in keeping with warm hands held together, in keeping with the cry rising from our chests, the pledge to not abandon them in our throats, let us not give up, let us rise up to save the lives of those in prison and stop the cycle of state murder. To tear off the noose from around the necks of our youth and to tear down the high gallows of death, rise up.

There is no other way! This time, let’s occupy the streets of the city with the cry of "Stop the executions" and continue the strikes with greater power and inclusiveness.

We are with you, although in prison, we have declared our solidarity with the street, from which we have been removed due to captivity. We will sit down on December 12 to express our opposition to the executions in the office of the guard officer of the Women's Ward of Evin Prison, singing the anthem and chanting slogans.

#StopTheExecutions

Signed:

Asal Mohammady

Narges Mohammadi

Golrokh Iraei

Saba Kordafshari

Fariba Asadi

Zahra Safaee

Marzie Farsi

Parastoo Moeinee

Sepideh Gholian

Pooran Nazemi

Bahareh Hedayat

Zohreh Sarv

Golareh Abbasi

Nasrin Javadi

Farangin Mazloom

Zohre Davari

Elnaz Eslami

Zohreh Zeyvari

Iranwire reported:

“Iqbal Iqbali, Toomaj Salehi's uncle, told Iranwire that Toomaj's family has not been able to meet with Toomaj for the past month, and they do not know about his situation or even his health status following the torture he has suffered during his detention.

“Mr. Iqbali also announced that the relatives of this rap singer are very worried about their son’s condition, and the news of charges against him 'Corruption on earth' has been recently confirmed.

“On Saturday, November 26th, the Chief Justice of Isfahan [Asadollah Jafari] said that Toomaj Salehi, the protesting rap singer, is accused of corruption on earth.

"Jafari said that other accusations against Toomaj are as listed 'propaganda activity against the regime', 'formation and administration of illegal groups with the intention of disrupting the security of the country', 'collaborating with the government of a hostile state' and 'spreading lies and disturbing the public mind through social media' and 'inciting and encouraging people to commit violent acts'."

Whenever dissidents criticize or organize peacefully in Iran, they face spurious accusations of "collaborating" with US or Israeli espionage forces, even without the slightest evidence. All the other so-called accusations are simply fascist code words for supporting, organizing or informing about protests.

Share these Toomaj videos

In a campaign to bring Toomaj's brilliant lyrics and rhymes to an English-speaking audience, IEC volunteers put together an initial YouTube playlist of Toomaj's videos with English subtitles.

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A video from the Toomaj International Page shows efforts in Amsterdam to spread the word broadly -- something we can all do! See our Resources page for palm card to print and post.

The full story of what happened that deadly night has not yet been pieced together.  However, in the weeks since the fire, damning evidence has emerged from many sources, including interviews with prisoners in Evin, investigations by Amnesty International, and an extensive forensic examination of audio and video footage by the Washington Post.

These reports poked holes in the Islamic regime’s story and point to the possibility that the fire, death and destruction were the result of a massive and pre-planned assault against the prisoners using the pretext of a “fight among common prisoners.” The regime’s goal may well have been to silence Iran’s courageous and influential political prisoners, including the many dual nationals, artists, intellectuals, and newly imprisoned protesters at Evin, but also to send a threatening message to protesters in the streets.

Amnesty International reported that the sounds of gunshots and screaming in Ward 7 could be heard by prisoners in neighboring wards as early as 8 p.m. and that “authorities sought to justify their bloody crackdown on prisoners under the guise of battling the fire.” The sewing workshop is typically closed around 5:00 PM after the evening head count.  Prisoners are then routinely locked in their cells, hours before the flames were first spotted around 10:00 PM.

Analysis of videos by The Washington Post’s forensic team confirmed that three people were filmed throwing what seemed to be flammable liquid on the roof over Ward 7, unimpeded by guards in their towers. They concluded that “findings are damning: At least one fire that night appears to have been started intentionally at a time when prisoners are locked in their cells. The most deadly fire erupted near the scene of the arson. As prisoners tried to flee the fire, guards and other security forces assaulted them with batons, live ammunition, metal pellets and explosives.”

Evidence of Planning and Preparations by Prison Authorities Before the Fire

• Three days before the fire, the ward’s fire extinguishers capsules were removed on orders of the head of the prison, with the excuse that they needed to be refilled.
• Several prisoners connected to Iran’s ruling figures were furloughed in the days before and until after the fire, such as Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani, the son of a former president. He was housed in Ward 7 and usually furloughed Wednesday through Friday.  He was sent home early, and told not to return until after Saturday October 15.
• On the day before the fire, prisoners reported seeing special 24-hour anti-riot guards being transported into Evin where they marched through the wards, banging on doors, chanting “God is great,”as snipers were positioned on the roof.  Some also reported that at noon on October 15, “The prison alarm sounded, which was unprecedented. We started seeing new batons and handcuffs coming in, and guards were placed on 24-hour watch. This was all in preparation for the crackdown.”

True Toll of Prisoners Killed or Injured is Still Unknown

Radio Zamaneh had broadcast this chilling account by one or more political prisoners:

“…Ward 7, which he claims held 1,700 to 1,800 prisoners that night, has been evacuated: ‘We have no idea where they took them.’  The source whose voice reached Zamaneh from Evin stated that the number of people killed from Ward 7 is very high, much more than that expressed by the narrative of the Islamic Republic.”
….
“One of the prisoners even said that some prisoners were being directly shot at. There was shooting towards the windows of the rooms. Yesterday, they came and removed the bullets from the pipes and the walls. The windows were completely shot out, it was a strange scene.”

It is likely that the toll could have been much higher had it not been for peoples’ immediate and massive resistance, both inside and outside the prison walls. Prisoners in Ward 8 and Ward 7 broke down the door between their wards to escape the smoke and try to help each other, all the while chanting slogans as they were being assaulted by guards.

As former political prisoner Atena Daemi tweeted, "I found out the [non-political] prisoners in Ward 7, who were always described as dangerous, when they managed to break their door, they went to Ward 8 to save the prisoners but were immediately shot at! [by guards].”

Prisoners in different wards kept up constant chanting, standing against the authorities’ attempts to massacre them under cover of “intra-prisoner conflicts.”  And the immediate mobilization of supporters outside the prison, plus the word of the outrage spread in real time on social media, focused considerable attention and condemnation on prison authorities.

Since late September, over 14,000 protesters have been arrested, many of whom have been sent to Evin.   This massive fire at Evin throws a spotlight on the growing danger to prisoners in Iran’s dungeons, especially its political prisoners.  

As IranWire.com noted, “The fire at one of Tehran’s most heavily guarded facilities potentially raises the stakes for those continuing to rally against the government and the mandatory wearing of the hijab, following the death of Mahsa Amini last month.”

All this highlights the need to continue to expose the recent fire and assault at Evin prison , and to answer the call from Burn the Cage/Free the Birds campaign in Europe, joined by the International Emergency Campaign based in the U.S., to broaden and deepen the struggle to free Iran’s political prisoners both inside Iran and worldwide.

Sources and Notes

Accounts from political prisoners:

·  Oct 23, 2022 Statement, cited by activists in Iran, is drawn from the Instagramaccount of rights activist Narges Mohammadi, with 133K followers.  She is imprisoned in the women’s ward in Evinbefore, during and since the fire.

·  Radio Zameneh,  Zameneh Media, radiozameneh.com: A Report from Evin Prison: The Ministry of Intelligence has Taken Control Over the Prison in Efforts of Fabricating a Case”, Oct. 21, 2022. A Report on Evin's Wounded prisoners: "Get used to the pellets," Oct. 28, 2022 (radiozamaneh.com)

·  Interview with Atena Daemi, former political prisoner and human rights activist in Iran,  “Exclusive: Deadly Iran jail fire erupted as police clashed with inmates,”Reuters, October20, 2022.

·   “Cover Up, What Do We Know About Evin Prison Fire,” IranWire, October, 2022. According to their sources inside Evin prison, 11 of the prisoners injured in ward 8 are political prisoners. Theseinmates are: Mohammed Khani, Javad Sidi, Siros Qercha, Sephar Imam Juma, RezaQalandari, Mehdi Vafaei, MeysamDehbanzadeh, Ayoub Harari, Mehran Karimi, Yashar Tawhidi and Parsa Golshani.

 Investigative reports from major media:

·  Evin on fire: What really happened inside Iran’s most notorious prison, Washington Post,October 25, 2022;

·  “Iran: Tortured Prisoners at Evin Prison Are in Urgent Need of International Protection,” Amnesty International, October 18, 2022;

·   “Exclusive: Deadly Iran jail fire erupted as police clashed with inmates,” Reuters,October 20, 2022;

·   “Authorities said on Saturday that a prison workshop had been set on fire"after a fight among a number of prisoners convicted of financial crimes and theft".  Reuters, October 16,2022:

·  “Protest, Chants, a Riot and Gunshots: How a Prison Fire Unfolded in Iran,” New York Times, October 21, 2022.

·   "Death Toll Rises to 13 Following Fire and Riots at Evin Prison," IranWire,October 18.2022.

 Background:

·  Originally built in 1972 by the Shah of Iran, a murderous US puppet, specifically to torture and punish political activists, Evin Prison was taken over and expanded by the Islamic Republic of Iran when it took power after the revolution which overthrew the Shah in 1979.Today the name of huge facility outside the capital, Tehran, is synonymous with torture and mass executions, and houses thousands of prisoners, including many political prisoners, as well as dual national prisoners. The prison, with its own execution yard and courtroom, abuts the foothills of the scenic Ablorz Mountains and well-to-do neighborhoods of Northern Tehran.

·  "Fire,Explosions and Gunshots at Iran’s Evin Prison - Prisoners’ Blood on Hands of the Islamic Republic," revcom.us, October 17, 2022 and "Massacre at Evin Prison, in Iran update...Powerful Nationwide Resistance in Iran Continues in the Face of Murderous Government Repression," revcom.us, October24, 2022

Unofficial translation of post by IEC:

"Once again, security agencies have stormed the residences and work of several filmmakers and began confiscating their personal and work supplies, questioning and arrests. ‎

"In all these years, not only widespread censorship, but also the involvement of security agencies in the field of cinema have brought the job security of filmmakers to the lowest possible level. the involvement of security agencies in the field of culture and art, economics and other matters while remaining out of their main duties and in a deviant move, activists have been investigated and harassed for critical attitudes. such a functioning of security agencies is clearly at the expense of national security and in contravention of freedom of expression and the rights of the nation. ‎

"We call for the release of all prisoners of opinion and the scope of culture and art, including documentary filmmakers."

I believe that the repressive government’s vulgarity and authoritarianism should be challenged by the exercise of even minimum levels of peaceful civil power. We must strengthen and demonstrate the legitimate authority and the people’s fundamental rights in the face of the illegitimate regime. Obviously, human rights-violating systems have no legitimacy due to the apparent “crimes against humanity” and do not deserve obedience and respect. In this regard, civil disobedience against anti-human orders and laws is a civil and peaceful movement.

I do not accept the verdicts against me, and now I am on the sixth day of absence and rebellion against returning to prison. Unfortunately, yesterday I received a letter about confiscating my guarantor’s property, which shows that the authoritarian regime does not shy away from any inhuman or illegal act. I will disobey the prosecutor’s order to return to prison as long as my rebellion and disobedience do not lead to the confiscation of my guarantor’s property.  #CivilDisobedience

Narges Mohammadi
Tehran

***

نظام استبداد دینی، دادگاه های عدالت ستیز ، قوانین ضد حقوق بشری و آرا سرکوبگرانه دادگاه ها را به رسمیت نمی شناسم و از هر ابزاری برای نافرمانی مدنی استفاده می کنم.

در دو دادگاه اخیر به دلیل اعتراض به تعرض های بی شرمانه مردان حکومت دینی و در پرونده دوم به دلیل اصرار بر حق اجتماعات و حق داشتن تشکل که هر دو از اساسی ترین و بنیادی ترین حقوق مردم است، به زندان و شلاق محکوم شده ام. صدور آرا محکومیت علیه فعالان سیاسی و مدنی و صنفی توسط دادگاههای غیر مستقل، نه برای تحقق عدالت بلکه در راستای سرکوب و ارعاب جامعه است و ما مردم نه فقط در راستای احقاق “حق” بلکه برای ادای ” تکلیف” می بایست در مقابل آن سر خم نکنیم، بایستیم و اقتدار مردم را در مقابل قدرت نامشروع و قدرت بی پشتوانه مردمی حکومت، نشان دهیم.

بر این باورم که می بایست قدرت نمایی و اقتدار طلبی حکومت سرکوبگر را با اعمال حتی اندک قدرت مدنی ممکن و مسالمت آمیز به چالش کشید. مهم این است که اراده کنیم در مقابل اقتدار نامشروع حکومت، قدرت و اقتدار مشروع و حقوق اساسی مردم را تقویت کرده و نشان دهیم.

بدیهی است نظام های ناقض حقوق بشر به دلیل واضح و روشن ” جنایت علیه منزلت انسانی” حقانیتی نداشته و سزاوار تمکین و احترام نیستند و نافرمانی مدنی از فرامین و قوانین ضد انسانی، حرکتی مدنی، مسالت آمیز و به سوی صلح است.

آرا صادره علیه خود را نمی پذیرم و اکنون در ششمین روز غیبت و تمرد از بازگشت به زندان هستم و متاسفانه دیروز نامه ای مبنی بر توقیف اموال وثیقه گذارم را دریافت کرده ام که نشان از ضعف نهادی دارد که به جای تحقق عدالت به ستیز با آن بر پاست.

تا جایی که نافرمانی و تمرد و عدم تمکین از بازگشت به زندان موجب مصادره اموال وثیقه گذارم نگردد، از دستور دادستان برای بازگشت به زندان سرپیچی خواهم کرد

نافرمانی مدنی

نرگس محمدی

تهران

In Sepidar [a prison in Ahvaz, Iran –ed.], I saw an Arab woman whose young son was killed by officers, denied her right to attend the funeral. Now, I only remember her scream: "God, you are not our God!" A cry unheeded in Sepidar, that at any moment can be heard from anyone else's mouth.

My mother, on our last visitation at Sepidar, brought bottles of milk and some other items for the unborn child of Elahe Dervishi. My mom said: "Sepideh! When she delivers her baby, it should be for you as if Tahora and Mehra [Sepideh’s brother and sister] were born." Becoming a mother means the birth of the new and a sign of hope, but becoming a mother in Sepidar is an exile to a desert full of despair at the end of the world. I stroked the belly of a goddess grown tired of slander and humiliation, filled with pain. [Devishi is the name of a goddess of Persian folklore –ed] She still did not know why, at the age of 18, such huge torment had been befallen her. I had yet to see Elahe’s son, who would be born Arabic-speaking, accused and convicted from the moment of birth.

But then my exile certificate arrived and I had to gather the pieces of my heart and and go to Bushehr carrying a world of heartache. I had to say goodbye to Mekieh, who was like my blood sister, Mekieh who had to repeat to interrogators the details of sexual intercourse with her husband. I later heard that she had been killed. When I left Sepidar, I became an exiled woman and remained in exile to this moment.

The days in exile were much longer. In exile, my bones were broken. They never allowed me to return to my homeland, Sepidar. They never let me be one with Sepidar.

I have put Haft Tapeh [where Sepideh was arrested covering the strike of sugar cane workers –ed.] in my eyes, the Arab people and Khuzestan in my heart in my heart. When I was deported to Bushehr, I saw a woman named Mahin Boland Krami. Mahin was a Kurd; she was like the mountains of her homeland, forgotten, sad and with many wounds on her body. Her head was rested on my legs and she was in pain till she died. She was killed simply because her tongue had spoken the truth.

Silence was no longer permissible nor possible. From childhood, I have spoken about the oppression I have seen. But the ongoing suffering in Bushehr prison was hard to believe, even for me who witnessed it. A woman called out from the crowd that it was time to find each other and hold each other’s hands. She was right. Standing on the edge of the abyss, I came back to life. You believed what I had witnessed. You stayed with us. We stayed together and you did not believe the cameras and the lies [referring to the interview the jailers forced her to give, which she recanted –ed].

The reasoning and evidence in the case was so obvious that even in the same courts of repression and blood, I was acquitted of the charge of spreading lies about Bushehr. A better way to put it is that each of us, who had found each other and held each other's hands, were acquitted.

From Evin:

Now I am a woman in love; very much in love. In addition to the fragrance of wood chips, the fragrance of sweets, I fall in love with the resistance of my beloved fellow prisoners. In the midst of the sufferings, a young and loving woman is doomed to pack again. Exile! The torture of going from one prison to another.

Today, I am again in love. Passion, dance and freedom have taken over my whole being, So I want to write to you about the sufferings of several other women, in hopes that you will remember not me, but these women, will speak of them and spread their names from one mouth to another, in hopes that one day, with their lovers, they may tell the story of their romances in their native languages, in neighborhoods that belong to them. Hope that we are happy at last. Let's dance and stand up in the four corners of Iran.

I. Maryam Haji Hosseini has been in prison for more than two years. Maryam is one of those who preferred the thirst of staying in her homeland to the temptation of leaving, hoping to have a part in development. She has told the officials that she is dissatisfied with the country's role in the world, so she stayed to do something about it. But the answer to this vision was to arrest Maryam and accuse her of spying for Israel. She was charged with “corruption on earth” and convicted and sentenced to execution.

She spent 412 days, that is, a year and a few months, in solitary confinement at a secret prison at the foot of the mountains. In an unknown place. Far away, with no word of her son Alireza. She has asked herself a thousand times why she hoped for the prosperity of a country that is so committed to the destruction of its sympathizers. After 412 days, she was transferred to the women's ward of Evin Prison on charges of corruption with a death sentence marked on her forehead.

Now, whenever any official arrives at the women's ward of Evin Prison, she requests for the thousandth time: “If there is a single shred of evidence proving my espionage, please execute me as soon as possible; I can no longer stand this scandal, please execute me.”

II. Niloufar Bayani has been in prison since she was 30 years old on charges of spying for the Mossad, the CIA, and any other institution that comes to mind of the Sepah [Army unit, in charge of these kinds of matters—ed]. She was a United Nations employee and a student at Columbia University. She has been held in solitary confinement for more than two years and is serving her fifth year in prison. During this time she was sometimes taken to the parking lot of empty apartments around the city, sometimes to a villa in Lavasan. The interrogator took Niloufar in these parking lots and empty villas to get her to confess to spying. She endured more than two years in solitary confinement and all kinds of tortures and psychological pressures.

When you think about it, the four pillars of your body tremble, everything starts to die and die and die, what you did and did not do and what you said and did not say become run together until you cannot tell what you are saying, whether it's a confession of espionage, or a confession to the murder of a supposedly living interrogator who is registering your confession to his own murder!

Niloufar, who has spent all her time and life loving nature, is now here and can only greet the fishes from a distance.

III. Nahid Taghavi, a dual citizen, came to Iran from Germany. She is a communist and longs for justice and freedom. But she was sentenced to 10 years and eight months in prison. Her child waits for her mother outside Iran. The mother does not have a visit, visitation rights, but does not raise an eyebrow. When she returns from her phone calls, she is so happy to have talked with her girl. Her daughter is worried about the prisoners. Worried about her mother's fellow prisoners. It seems that she also lives here in Evin Prison.

Her mother turns to me, her eyes bright with tears and excitement, and tells me that Maryam is no longer the same old Maryam. Now, her heart is in Evin. Her heart is with the people of Iran. Her heart beats for the freedom of Iran. Nahid was interrogated and tortured for months. She was given a medical furlough but that was taken away, which is itself is a case of torture. The reality of Nahid hugging her daughter, Maryam, is at the mercy of Iran-Germany relations! Nahid got Corona virus and was one of the few who did not receive medical leave. Nahid never cries unless a cellmate cries.

IV. Zohreh Sarv, a monarchist prisoner sentenced to seven years in prison. Zohreh was imprisoned in Qarchak for two whole years. Her release did not last more than two months, and she was re-arrested. A resilient and very sympathetic and kind woman. Zoher’s sick mother has no one but her and is waiting for her child to be released.

V. Shohreh (Leila) Gholikhani, a royalist/monarchist prisoner who has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison in absolute solitude. She has been presumed to be so lonely and helpless that they have seized all her assets, namely 21 million tomans of her mortgage equity have been taken away. God knows how much this woman mourned the loss of this money, her entire lifesavings. Only God knows.

VI. Glareh Abbasi has not spoken for a long time. She just screams, screams and in pain. Glareh has both rheumatism and osteoarthritis, suffers from spinal canal stenosis, and has five protruding lumbar discs. Add to this the pain of sciatica and heart failure, see what she has left but pain?

VII. Zahra Zehtabachi is the oldest female prisoner in Evin Prison. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, of which 9 years have passed. Only once during this time has she been sent on leave due to coronavirus. Mina, her daughter, was 11 years old when Zahra was arrested. Zahra was interrogated in solitary confinement for more than a year after her arrest. During this time, her husband and older daughter, Narges, were also arrested and harassed. Zahra's father is one of the victims of the bloody massacre of political prisoners in the 1980s.

VIII. Sepideh Kashani has been sentenced to six years in prison. Like Niloufar, she has been accused of espionage and has been held in solitary confinement for more than two years under the most severe psychological pressure and torture. Sepideh and Hooman were classmates, companions, colleagues, in conversations, spouses, companions, fellow travelers, sympathizers, in the same groups, consonants, coordinators, like-minded people, and companions. Because of the hum caused by some people's illusion of "complicity," they are both caged and bound. But as long as the source of the flow of their vast cycle of "togetherness" is the source of life and nature, these illusions will be transient.

Sepideh Gholian

February 2022, Evin Prison Women's Ward

Read more on Sepideh.

Yes, it is a disgrace, but for whom: me or those who brought these calamities upon me? O awakened consciences, it is for you to judge who is guilty: me, the one with nothing but the desire for human freedom and equality, or those who tortured me so much for their own interests?! Judge for yourself, I am not as healthy as I was ten years ago and prison’s keys have tempered and polished my body. When the torturers were torturing me, all that was left for me was my thoughts and beliefs and my hope for women fighters and the future.

If I tell you that the pen is incapable of writing about my own suffering, I am not exaggerating, because I have only told you a small part of my torture. I hope my words have not saddened you on this precious day.

Sometimes I wonder where in the world I am, or what part of the history I am stuck in, that no matter how hard I try, I cannot find a way out. Is this what I deserve?! To witness the hanging of my compatriots and relatives and stay silent?! It is strangeWar, hatreds, hypocrisy, killing, murder and torture -- all are carried out as though it is ordinary, normal. And the oppressors justify each of their crimes - their justifications are the most painful part for me.

So, bold and determined women – shout what once was unspeakable! I do not wish death for anyone, not even the oppressors. But let us fight together against the oppressors, drive them out of our homeland. Let us not be ashamed tomorrow of remaining silent today, while women are losing their lives fighting for freedom and equality.

I am Zeinab, Zeinab Jalalian; A Kurdish woman who witnessed hundreds of crimes committed by the Islamic Republic in prison and witnessed accusations, insults, torture and, worst of all, the execution of ten of my fellow prisoners. Is there a greater pain than this?! Yet these oppressors want me to express my regrets! How can I express regret, regret for what? Regret that my eyes have seen their oppression and brutality? Believe me, whenever the oppressors increase their oppression and torture, I become bolder and more resilient."

Sepideh had contracted the virus after the Omicron variant when it spread in the women's ward of Evin Prison, but it has become more severe.. Sepideh's body has become  so weak and unstable due to the prison transfer, her hunger strikes, the constant pressures of the past few years, plus untreated underlying chronic diseases -- such that even a cold can overwhelm her.

The effects of Omicron have caused Sepideh's body to reject most water and food due to indigestion, and secondarily to excrete it all (resulting in dehydration). Her body temperature has not yet returned to normal, and her weakness, lethargy, and jaundice are evident even from a distance. Due to this situation, with the help of the lawyer of the case, Mr. Raisian, we applied for medical furlough, which must be the right of a prisoner with a dangerous health condition. After much effort and insistence, the trial judge, while claiming  she had crossed a red line with her previous furlough, and was not entitled to another furlough, -- finally did agree to sign the form for her  medical release.
‍
BUT the marathon continues -- from finding money for her bail to finding an expert and going through the paper work for her medical release.   Everything possible was done but at the last minute they said they would not give her medical leave. Simply put, Sepideh and the family's hopes were taken hostage by the judiciary so that they could show that they were firmly in charge and in power.

Powerful people who consider her revelations of torture and harassment of women in Bushehr prison as Sepideh having crossed a red line, they are using their power to destroy Sepideh's life in their prison.  

On the eve of International Women's Day, our Sepideh's life is still in danger."

* Denial of Medical Treatment for Ailing Political Prisoners in Iran Aimed at Crushing Dissent - excerpted from Center for Human Rights in Iran, March 3, 2022 https://www.iranhumanrights.org/2022/03/denial-of-medical-treatment-for-ailing-political-prisoners-in-iran-aimed-at-crushing-dissent/‍

“The continued denial of proper medical treatment to ailing political and civil rights activists in Iran is setting the stage for deliberate crimes against the many political prisoners in the country, including Sepideh Qoliyan, Soheila Hejab, Zeinab Jalalian, Arsham (Mahmoud) Rezaee, and Abbas Vahedian Shahroudi.

Fears for the lives of the activists are heightened by the fact that at least two political prisoners have already perished in Iranian state custody in the first few months of 2022 after being denied urgently required medical treatment: Baktash Abtin and Adel Kianpour.”

* Prominent Blogger Seved Hossein Ronaghi Maleki's Life In Danger -  excerpted from Committee to Protect Journalists, February, 2022
‍ https://cpj.org/2022/02/prominent-blogger-seved-hossein-ronaghi-maleki-arrested-in-iran-after-critical-tweets/

Freelance blogger and freedom of expression activist, Seved Hossein Ronaghi Malekim was arrested in Iran after critical tweets February 24, 2022. . . The blogger was reportedly taken to Evin prison where he immediately went on a dry hunger strike (no food or liquid).  “Hossein’s life is at risk because he suffers from several health conditions including kidney, lungs, blood, and digestive issues and we don’t know if the kidnappers will give him his medicine. ” His current status is unknown.  

* Two Elderly Dual Nationals Among Five Sentenced to Prison in Iran, excerpted from Center for Human Right in Iran, August 4, 2021
https://www.iranhumanrights.org/2021/08/two-elderly-dual-nationals-among-five-sentenced-to-prison-in-iran/

Elderly dual national prisoners Mehran Raoof, 66, and Nahid Taghavi, 64, were among five prisoners held on trumped-up charges who were sentenced to jail…as Iran’s overcrowded prisons remain rife with risk, with new COVID-19 infections continuing to shatter records throughout the country. “To condemn two peaceful, elderly people to prison under sham charges at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is raging throughout the country reveals the cruelty of the Iranian judicial system,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI).

“These sentences indicate that the Iranian security establishment isn’t content with unlawfully harassing, jailing, and muzzling people, it also wants to endanger their lives,” he added. Covid continues to rage and kill in Iran’s prisons.  

‍‍‍

‍* On March 1, 2022 #freeNahid organizer Mariam Claren launched a social media campaign to mark her mother’s 500th day of imprisonment.

These two cases were also highlighted in the Emergency Appeal that says

“Nahid Taghavi, rights activist, retired architect, and Iranian-German citizen, suffers from diabetes and hypertension. Her daughter Mariam Claren reports that her mother was kept in solitary confinement for 151 days, and was interrogated 80 different times for a total of 1,000 hours during her first 147 days of imprisonment.  Mehran Raoof, a British-Iranian citizen and labor rights activist, is “being held in prolonged solitary confinement,” according to AI.  Raoof was released from solitary confinement on June 12 but his health and safety has not been verified.”

‍International Outcry for Medical Furlough

All the international outcry had likely played a significant role in winning the recent medical furlough for Nasrin Sotoudeh, Narges Mohammadi and others, as well as the permanent release of Atena Daemi.  

We call on all people of conscience who finds this situation intolerable to not only sign, circulate but donate and help us publish the Emergency Appeal in campus, community, social, cultural and political publications. The Emergency Appeal is now available in six different languages available on our website. Do write us with your questions and efforts freeiranspoliticalprisonersnow@gmail.com.

On February 14, Taghi Rahmani quoted Narges as saying, “In Qarchak prison, we are denied the basic needs of a human being, namely the right to breathe clean air and drink potable water." “When I arrived, I was put in solitary confinement. The water was so bad that I couldn't drink it. I was forced to drink tea, which made me feel nauseous and vomit. In prison, the same water is used for everything.”

RSF (Reporters Without Borders) reports that Qarchak, notorious for its appalling hygiene, currently holds at least 1,200 women. The latest Covid-19 wave has exacerbated the situation even more and has increased the risks for vulnerable prisoners. Mohammadi reported via her husband, “Those who test positive are quarantined in the prison gym, which is unheated and has no beds, without receiving any special care.”

The prison’s sewers emit not only an “unbearably” nauseating stench but also ammonia and another type of gas that cause respiratory problems among the detainees.

Although I have been dead for a hundred years,
I will stand at my grave
To take the heart out of the devil’s body,
By my fiery cry!

Only a day after the death of Baktash Abtin, a wave of support and an outcry for justice has begun for him and other prisoners killed in Iran.

The transfer of prisoners and their abduction to unknown places in order to break this solidarity continues, but solidarity with our hunger strike continues in Iran and abroad.

Hunger strikers Hamid Haj Jafar Kashani and Mahmoud Ali Naghi as well as Mohammad Abolhassani have been transferred to the Greater Tehran Prison.

We just found out that political activist and journalist Keyvan Samimi was transferred from Ward 4 of Hall 1 in the middle of the night on Thursday, January 20, without any prior notice.  He was inhumanly and forcefully beaten and threatened, according to his cellmates, in a brutal physical assault by guards who tore his clothing off.  He was then transferred to Ghezel Hesar (Golden Cage) Prison.

Keyvan Samimi is a political activist and journalist who has been arrested many times in previous years, before and after the revolution, and spent years in prison, for publishing exposures of the government in newspapers and magazines.

Because of the regime’s fear of unity and solidarity among prisoners, active prisoners are deported to other prisons. After the torture and killing of Sattar Beheshti in prison, the regime was forced to apologize and expel the entity’s police chief and the head of Evin prison.  The regime has never again accepted any responsibility for the killing of political activists in prison. The regime declares that all of them died of illnesses.

However, if prisoners who were ill had been taken to the hospital on time, these catastrophes could have been prevented.  The question has arisen, why is it only these political prisoners who are so easily killed in prison? Therefore, we felt that to enlighten the public that the political prisoners are on a hunger strike, starting after the death of Baktash Abtin, to communicate to the outside world in hopes of preventing the deaths and transfers of prisoners who are on hunger strike in Tehran and Evin prisons and other prisons throughout the country.

Statement by Political Prisoners Mohammad Abolhassani, Sina Beheshti, Hamid Kashani, Mohammad Turkman, Mahmoud Ali Naghi, Hossein Qashqaei, Reza Salavati, Milad Arsanjani, Shahab Soltanian, Mehran Delfan Azari, and Akbar Faraji

Ganji was sentenced to 5 years for “conspiracy to act against national security,” 5 years for “membership and cooperation with an anti-regime group,” and one year for “propaganda against the regime”,

Karin Deutsch Karlekar, director of Free Expression at Risk Programs at PEN America, stated: “From the start of this investigation, the Iranian government has been targeting Ganji with the baseless claim that his translation of a book poses a threat to national security. His wildly disproportionate sentence and imminent imprisonment are part of a broader pattern of legal harassment against writers in Iran, the latest blatant miscarriage of justice as authorities continue to lock up the literary community. Furthermore, Ganji suffers from serious health conditions likely to be dangerously exacerbated in prison."

Her case was referenced in our Emergency Appeal as an example of prisoners’ lives that are hanging in the balance and why we must act now with urgency:

Women prisoners are increasingly transferred to more remote prisons, limiting access by their family and lawyers. They include: Sepideh Gholian, a freelance journalist arrested for reporting and allegedly taking part in labor strikes. In early March 2021, she was suddenly transferred in chains from Tehran's Evin Prison to Bushehr Prison in southern Iran, more than 373 miles from her parents.

Below, we are reprinting letters from Mohammad Hajinia and Nafiseh Malekijoo.  They are both defendants in the same Branch 26 court case as the others listed in their letters.  Both of them are not inside Iran at this time, but both were convicted and sentenced in absentia. Mohammad Hajinia is a student studying and living outside of Iran, and Malekijoo left Iran before the recent sentencing. The following are their statements:

"I, Mohammad Hajinia, is studying abroad. I recently woke up one morning and found out that I had been sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison by Branch 26 of the Islamic Revolutionary Tribunal of Tehran.  This sentence was issued along with [the sentences of] seven other political defendants named Nahid Taghavi, Mehran Raouf, Somayeh Kargar, Bahareh Soleimani, Nazanin Mohammadnejad, Elham Samimi and Nafiseh Malekijoo.

I was not in Iran at the time of the security forces' raid on the homes of the seven. I was not in Iran during their arrests, their solitary confinements and lengthy interrogations, and finally during their trial and sentencing. I was not even aware I was accused.

But before this, I had the good fortune to meet, talk, discuss and be friends with some of the defendants in this case. Our occasional interaction was an intellectual, friendly and fruitful one. We now know that they have been sentenced to prison and put in long solitary confinement because of their thoughts and opinions....The arrest and conviction of these people and all those who are in prison because of their thoughts and ideas is deeply reactionary and unjust and should be condemned.

According to the indictment, I was charged with "participating in the administration of the Communist Party of Iran (Marxist-Leninist-Maoist) in order to disrupt security and propaganda activities against the holy system of the Islamic Republic of Iran.” Without being present and without even having information about my indictment and the process of my case, I have been sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. Such cases and empty verdicts are not new. They are repetitions of the "death commission" themes that are played daily. We are familiar with it, but we are not accustomed to it.  We will not get used to it. "                                                            

Mohammad Hajinia August 6, 2021

“I am Nafiseh Malekijoo. According to Branch 26 of the Islamic Revolutionary court, I was sentenced along with seven other political prisoners, Nahid Taghavi, Mehran Raouf, Somayeh Kargar, Bahareh Soleimani, Mohammad Hajinia, Nazianin Mohammadnejad and Elham Samimi. I was indicted in absentia.

On the evening of October 25, 2020…the security forces attacked my house with an insidious trick that surprised me.  Then they forced their way into the house and they beat me mercilessly.  They had come to inspect the house, and at first they were one man and one woman but their numbers gradually increased. I do not remember exactly how many there were. They were moving back and forth, curiously watching everything and my every move, sort of my life was under their magnifying glass….

They confiscated my handwritten notebooks, my communications tools, and my identification documents including my passport ... They came to inspect the house and said "You are just a defendant!"  But reality said it was my house, with its doors and walls that held my memories, my friends, my loved ones.

I was suddenly summoned for a night interrogation, in my own space….After the house was searched, the security forces told me to show up at a place that was not a judicial center, one of their "safe houses" a few days later.  But I did not go.  I was forced to exile myself [from Iran]. I lived in hiding for months and swallowed my fiery anger at our situation, alone.  I waited for a written summons, and my written summons was issued at a time when I had dared to bite the bullet and was ready to leave everything behind with all my regrets. I left….

I knew politically that I would make the news of this trial in absentia and declare the trials of all my co-defendants illegal and inhumane.  I was sentenced to a total of six years and nine months in prison "for membership in the Communist Party of Iran (Marxist, Leninist,Maoist) in order to disrupt security and propagate against the holy order of the Islamic Republic of Iran."  In addition, it goes without saying that the manner in which I was tried in absentia without access to an indictment, a lawyer, etc., shows the injustice and cruelty of the Iranian judicial system and the entire Islamic Republic.

The people involved in this [court] case have been sentenced to imprisonment with reactionary trials in unjust…terms.  I condemn the government from afar with my own voice.  

I have always stood with my co-defendants when they were in long-term solitary confinement, when they were being prosecuted, and when their temporary detention was illegally extended. Now that there is no need to explain it, I did not hesitate to sympathize with them.  I did not know all of them, but some of them have enriched my mind enough that for the rest of my life, I will not forget what the Islamic Republic did and is doing with "us."  And of course I will not forget the loud and pleasant voices we can have to raise up again and again.  Let's shout for liberation.

For the release of all political prisoners,

Nafiseh Malekijoo, August 10, 2021

CHRI calls on the Iranian authorities to cease trying to muzzle free speech and expression and allow peaceful activism without the threat of violence, imprisonment or death. CHRI urges the international community to speak out against this unlawful state violence, and to monitor the human rights situation in Iran with heightened vigilance ahead of a sham election, scheduled for June 18, 2021, that could bring Ebrahim Raisi, a man guilty of crimes against humanity, to power.

Mohammadi and Mothers of Killed Protesters Violently Confronted in Shiraz

Mohammadi and other activists, including the mothers of peaceful protesters who were killed by security forces, were first violently confronted and briefly detained by state agents who refused to identify themselves on June 12, 2021, in the city Shiraz. They had traveled to Shiraz to visit the grieving family of champion wrestler Navid Afkari, who was unjustly executed there in September 2020.

The activists had peacefully gathered outside the prison where the wrestler was hanged—and where his two brothers now also fear for their lives in prolonged solitary confinement—when they were beaten by plainclothes agents who refused to identify themselves.

The second confrontation occurred on June 17 when Mohammadi traveled with fellow activists to the city of Shazand in Markazi Province to visit the family of an imprisoned human rights lawyer, Mohammadi Najafi, and was refused entry into the city.

Agents who again refused to identify themselves forced her into a car, drove her around for hours and “confronted her with violence.”

"They showed us an Intelligence Ministry letter requesting the prosecutor prohibit [my] entry into Shazand,” Mohammadi said in an audio message that was circulated on social media.

In the message, Mohammadi added that she was with three human rights lawyers, Abdolfattah Soltani, Arash Keykhosravi and Mostafa Nili, as well as Shanaz Akmali, who has been seeking justice for her son Mostafa Karim Beigi, who was killed in Tehran during a 2009 protest.

Mohammadi: “It has been nothing short of kidnappings and threatening my life”

“When I ask them to show me any legal documents and identify themselves, they refused,” Mohammadi told CHRI. “It has been nothing short of kidnappings and threatening my life. In Shiraz I was assaulted and bruised. My life is in danger.”

They were ultimately forced to return to Tehran.

Released from prison in October 2020 after serving five years for engaging in peaceful activism including against capital punishment, Mohammadi was again sentenced to 30 months in prison and 80 lashes in May 2021 for joining a peaceful sit-in at Evin Prison’s Women’s Ward to protest the violent state suppression of street protests in November 2019.

In late December 2019, following her participation in a peaceful protest in Evin prison against the killing of protestors by state security forces in November 2019, Mohammadi was forcibly and violently exiled to Zanjan prison, some 300 km from Tehran.

Instead of investigating her complaint against the violent prison transfer, she was later sentenced to more prison time. These rights violations took place during the tenure of Judiciary Chief Raisi.

In 2016, Mohammadi was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment for “membership in the [now banned] Step by Step to Stop the Death Penalty” group; “taking part in assembly and collusion against national security” and “committing propaganda against the state.”

The former Deputy Director of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre (DHRC), Mohammadi was awarded the Per Anger Prize by the Swedish government for her human rights work in 2011 and the Andrei Sakharov Prize from the American Physical Society in 2018.

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He said he had objected to several aspects of the cases. He said that they prevented us from visiting because I am not a first-degree relative. Yesterday, Mehran was finally transferred to a public ward after eight months in solitary confinement.

On the way back. I stopped in front of Shahr-e-Kitab,  ( big bookstore, city of books). Usually, I would have been interested in seeing books. But, this time I did not have the patience to go to those chic-op's halls. I told myself how ironic and ridiculous it would be, to go to such a place while Mehran is in prison for translating several books and publishing them without censorship. Then I consoled myself that at least Mehran would no longer be in solitary confinement, but in a ward with other prisoners.

Indeed, freedom is so great for us, the people of this distant land, that we should be happy about going to a prison ward instead of solitary confinement! Then I remembered some of the writer friends who are also in Evin, and some of the labor and student activists who are there too. Maybe Mehran will join them and make a difference.

The memory of our walking in the streets of Tehran came to my mind, and of the Friday morning we crossed the same street by car and went to the mountains.

Damn this life!

Nahid Taghavi was arbitrarily detained by the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Tehran on October 16, 2020.

She was held in solitary confinement for the first 5 months of her detention. Nahid was not given appropriate access to medical care or legal representation. She has high blood pressure and her inhumane treatment took a toll on her health causing her diabetes which was previously under control, to return.

After public pressure due to campaigning by her daughter, Mariam Claren based in Germany, Nahid was transferred to the women’s wing for 20 days before being returned to solitary confinement once again on April 5, 2021 under the pretext of a visit to the doctor. After another 43 days in solitary confinement in Isolation Section 2-Alef, Nahid Taghavi was moved back to the women’s wing in Evin prison recently on May 16, 2021.

Nahid’s initial trial was on April 28, 2021. Her lawyer was only given access to her case file for the first time on April 24, 2021, 4 days before the trial itself and he could not see Nahid. As a result, her trial was postponed. Nahid’s new trial date is scheduled for June 13, 2021 before Revolutionary Court branch 26 in Tehran.

The German government must intervene and free their citizen, Nahid Taghavi immediately and unconditionally. She has been arbitrarily detained for 7 months, her health has deteriorated severely and she is now facing a sham trial.

Key points on Nahid Taghavi:

• 66 year old German-Iranian dual national
• Arbitrarily arrested on October 16, 2020 in her apartment in Tehran
• More than 6 months in solitary confinement
• No consular support despite her German citizenship

Contact:
Mariam Claren, +49 172 886 23 29
Twitter: @mariam_claren

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Six months later, Raouf is still being held on Ward 2A of Evin Prison, which is run by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The reasons for his arrest and the charges against him remain unknown.

A source close to Raouf, told HRANA news agency that the unionist is now suffering from physical ill-health due to the long interrogations and protracted time in a solitary cell.

The Committee to Support Mehran Raouf, which was set up by a number of international labor movements following his arrest, issued a fresh statement on April 9 expressing concern over his continued detention.

“Despite widespread support for Mehran Raouf from than 90 syndicates and trade unions around the world,” it read, “and the signing of a petition calling for Mehran Raouf's release by hundreds of social activists, the British government has not yet taken action to support him.”

IranWire approached the UK Foreign Office regarding Raouf’s case on February 8, 2021. Nine days later, the FCO responded: “We continue to raise the issue of British dual national detentions with the Iranian authorities”.

It is understood that no consular assistance has yet been provided to the British-Iranian national, whose immediate family all live outside Iran.

On March 16, 2021 calling for the unconditional release of the Iranian-British labor activist, saying: "Mehran Raouf is being held 'arbitrarily' in Evin Prison in Tehran. He is a prisoner of conscience and should be released immediately and unconditionally."

Amnesty International has also repeatedly called on the British government to include Mehran Raouf in its efforts to secure the release of Iranian-British nationals in Iran, alongside Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

The charity reports that Raouf was held incommunicado for a month after his arrest, after which he was allowed to make one brief telephone call to distant relative inside Iran.

Since then, Amnesty added, he had been “denied calls with his immediate family and the right to access legal counsel, even from the judiciary-approved lawyers that his family have retained on his behalf.

“He has been held in prolonged solitary confinement for months. Amnesty International fears that he is at serious risk of further torture and other human rights violations, especially given the Revolutionary Guards’ pattern of subjecting detainees to torture to extract forced ‘confessions’ which are later used to issue convictions in unfair trials.”

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The women in the wing gave her a warm welcome and told her about all the efforts that are made on international level to free her.

This is a first victory but the campaign and fight for her unconditional and immediate release have to be continued.

For today, I am happy that my mother is not isolated anymore and has the opportunity to talk with all the strong and brave women who are behind bars with her. We should all continue campaigning to free them all.

Special thanks to all the media for tireless covering the story of Nahid Taghavi.

Mariam Claren
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‍Key points on Nahid Taghavi:
‍· 66 year old German-Iranian dual national
· Arbitrarily arrested on October 16, 2020 in her apartment in Tehran
· 5 months in solitary confinement
· No access to lawyer
· No consular support despite her German citizenship

‍Contact:Mariam Claren, +49 172 886 23 29
Twitter: @mariam_claren

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