Civil Activist Hossein Kamangar on Hunger Strike at Sanandaj Intelligence Detention Center
Hossein Kamangar, a detained civil activist arrested by intelligence forces in December of last year and transferred to the Sanandaj Intelligence Detention Center, has been on a hunger strike for one week.
A source close to Mr. Kamangar confirmed this news in a brief conversation with Voice of America on Thursday.
Previously, the Campaign for the Defense of Political and Civil Prisoners reported that Hossein Kamangar, a civil and environmental activist residing in Kamyaran, after more than six months of detention, continues to be interrogated at the Sanandaj Intelligence Detention Center for forced confession extraction, and has been on hunger strike at this security institution since July 27.
According to this report, being prohibited from visits and having no right to contact his family since February of last year have been cited as reasons for this civil activist’s hunger strike.
An informed source told the campaign: “After Mr. Kamangar’s arrest by security agencies, a 45-day detention order was issued for him, and from February 17 onwards, due to his non-cooperation with security interrogators for forced confessions, they denied him the right to visit his family.”
This informed source stated: “After the arrest of this civil activist, initially his family was told that Mr. Kamangar was arrested due to membership in the National Unity Party, but after some time, the reason for his arrest was changed to collaboration with one of Iran’s opposition parties and participation in the killing of an ambulance driver.”
Hossein Kamangar was arrested on December 15, 2018, along with several other environmental and civil activists by officers of the Sanandaj Intelligence Directorate in Kamyaran with physical violence and was transferred to the Intelligence Detention Center in Sanandaj.
Previously, the political, security, and law enforcement deputy of Kurdistan Province’s governor accused these individuals of having a role in the killing of an ambulance driver in July of this year, and stated that these environmental activists were arrested as investigations continued to identify the ambulance driver’s killers.
Source: Voice of America
