Amnesty International: Dozens of people killed in Iranian prisons by government agents

Amnesty International believes that dozens of people have been killed in the crackdown on prisoners' protests. According to the human rights organization, the Iranian government, which is unable to protect prisoners' health from the coronavirus, should release them immediately and unconditionally.

In recent weeks, protests have taken place in Iranian prisons over fears of the spread of the coronavirus in prisons, which government forces have responded to with violence and force.

In a report published on Thursday (April 9), the human rights organization Amnesty International accused Iranian authorities of killing about 36 people in Iranian prisons during the coronavirus pandemic.

Thousands of prisoners in at least eight Iranian prisons were protesting, their lives at risk as the coronavirus spread, and authorities were indifferent to their plight. Instead of listening to the protests, prison administrators, with the help of security officers, violently suppressed them, killing dozens and wounding many more.

Diana Al-Tahawi, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, said: "Instead of addressing the reasonable demands of prisoners, Iranian authorities are killing them so that their voices of protest are not heard."

While emphasizing that ensuring health is a fundamental right of prisoners, he called for the formation of an independent committee to investigate illegal attacks by Islamic Republic agents.

Amnesty International has called on the leaders of the Islamic Republic to immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners who have been arrested and sentenced to long-term imprisonment solely for expressing peaceful dissent.

This human rights organization emphasizes that thousands of people in Iranian prisons are still at risk of contracting COVID-19.

Protest against the spread of coronavirus in prisons and its violent suppression

In recent weeks, as the coronavirus spread, some human rights groups reported that a number of Iranian prisoners had contracted the coronavirus.

Many prisoners and their families raised their voices in protest. A number of prisons went on hunger strikes. Many prisoners protested that the Iranian government, despite being unable to protect the health of prisoners, was still refusing to release most of them, thereby endangering their lives.

The human rights organization Amnesty International, citing credible reports, has revealed several cases of violence against prisoners on March 30 and 31.

Security forces reportedly used force to suppress prisoner protests, including in Sepidar and Sheiban, two prisons in Ahvaz. The police chief of Khuzestan province has admitted that members of the Revolutionary Guards and the Basij armed forces played a role in violently suppressing the protests.

Video posts circulating on social media show protests in the two aforementioned prisons and their violent suppression.

It is said that following protests, many prisoners have been transferred to unknown locations, presumably so that no one will hear the sounds of their torture or murder.

According to the families of those imprisoned in Sepidar Prison, in order to suppress the protests, officers, in addition to using tear gas, have shot at prisoners, injuring many and killing at least 15.

According to the families of the murdered prisoners, they received the bodies of their relatives from the prison a few days after the protests, even though they were told that the prisoners died from drug use.

According to Amnesty International sources, more than 20 people have lost their lives during similar incidents in Sheiban Prison.

Daniyal Zein al-Abedini was one of those who died in prison last week under mysterious circumstances. He had been sentenced to death for a murder he committed before reaching the legal age of 18.

The young man had participated in protests that had broken out in Mahabad prison. After the officers suppressed the protests, he was transferred to Miandoab prison in West Azerbaijan province on March 30. In a phone call on March 31, he had informed his family members about the mistreatment by the officers and asked them for help.

On April 3, officers called Daniyal’s family and claimed that he had committed suicide in prison and asked them to come to the prison to collect his body. The family of the prisoner denied the officials’ claim, saying that the victim’s body was covered in wounds and scars. Amnesty International, after examining photographs of Daniyal Zein al-Abedini’s body, is certain that he died as a result of torture.

Source: DW