Second political prisoner goes on hunger strike to protest Ahmad Reza Jalali's death sentence
Political prisoner Houshang Rezaei announced in a letter from Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj that he will go on a hunger strike to protest the confirmation of the death sentence of Ahmad Reza Jalali, a researcher with dual citizenship.
Mr. Rezaei is the second prisoner, after civil activist Farhad Meysami, to go on a hunger strike in support of Ahmad Reza Jalali.
In a letter on Tuesday, which began with a description of his detention, the pressures, and the "torture" he endured in prison, he wrote that since he had been under sentence of death for nine years and was familiar with the process of "torture and confession extraction," he would go on a hunger strike to support Mr. Jalali and "stop the torture that is a thousand times worse than beatings and flogging."
According to him, this hunger strike will begin on Wednesday, May 11, and he will refrain from eating any food, drinking water, or taking any medicine.
Houshang Rezaei was initially sentenced to death on charges such as “membership in the Komala Party,” “espionage,” and “moharebeh,” but this sentence was eventually commuted to 15 years in prison. In his letter, he denied all of these charges.
Previously, Farhad Meysami had also announced in a letter from Rajai Shahr Prison that he would go on a hunger strike until the execution of Ahmad Reza Jalali's death sentence was canceled.
Farhad Meysami has been sentenced to five years in prison since August 2018 for his civil actions opposing the compulsory hijab, and has been in prison without leave for more than four years.
Reports emerged on Tuesday of Mr. Meysami's critical condition during the hunger strike, and his lawyer warned that his client's life was in danger. According to the lawyer, Farhad Meysami's blood pressure on May 9, the third day of the hunger strike, was 8/5, which is extremely dangerous.
Mohammad Moghimi added: "Mr. Meysami is not well because he has a digestive disease and is definitely in danger due to his hunger strike."
In his letter, Farhad Meysami called on human rights organizations to seize every opportunity to stop Mr. Jalali's execution, writing, "These days, Ahmad Reza Jalali is one of the most helpless people on earth. Don't let Jalali be executed. No, I'll correct you: Don't let Jalali be executed 100 times!"
Last week, ISNA news agency reported, citing "informed sources," that Mr. Jalali's death sentence for the alleged crime of "spying for Israel" would be carried out in two weeks. A spokesman for the judiciary confirmed on May 10 that the sentence would be carried out .
Ahmadreza Jalali, a physician and university professor of Iranian descent and a Swedish citizen, was arrested by intelligence officials in 2016 while traveling to Iran to attend a scientific conference and sentenced to death by the Revolutionary Court of Tehran on charges of “spying and selling information to Israel” and “corruption on earth.” He has always denied these charges.
Source: Radio Farda
