31 protesters killed in protests and detention centers; over 3,700 arrested
The number of detainees who have lost their lives in prison in the recent protests has reached at least 4. Human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has announced, citing prisoners, that in addition to Sina Ghanbari , whose "suicide" claim by prison officials was published yesterday (January 8), two other detainees have also lost their lives in Tehran's Evin Prison.
The news of Sina Ghanbari’s death and her arrest during the protests was announced yesterday (January 8) by Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, citing Evin Prison officials. However, Mashreq News, citing sources related to the security forces and the Revolutionary Guard Corps, claimed that Sina Ghanbari “was never a student and has a diploma. According to the information received, her arrest has nothing to do with the recent events. According to some news sources, she was arrested by the police for carrying drugs and handed over to the judiciary.”
Vahid Heydari is also in Arak prison after a previous “suicide.” Prison officials and the Arak prosecutor claimed that he was arrested for carrying 10 grams of heroin. According to Radio France Internationale, according to Mohammad Najafi, a lawyer in Arak, Vahid Heydari was killed as a result of severe beatings and his killers are trying to tarnish his reputation by accusing him of addiction and carrying drugs. He emphasized that Vahid Heydari’s family is under severe pressure from security forces. According to Ali Bagheri, a civil rights activist in Arak, one of Vahid Heydari’s relatives who saw his body said that he saw a deep, swollen gash on the left side of his head. He said that Vahid Heydari was killed in prison and his family was forbidden from giving any interviews to the media. Vahid Heydari’s funeral was held under tight security. Vahid Heydari's uncle also said that his nephew's body was quickly buried on January 6th at a location designated by security officers in Behesht-e-Zahra, Arak.
It seems that the authorities responsible for gross human rights violations intend to repeat the claim of "suicide" and drug trafficking for all detainees killed in prison.
There have also been reports of the death of Mohsen Adeli , a Bakhtiari resident of Dezful, in Dezful prison. However, according to other reports, he was killed by a Kalashnikov bullet to the head during the protests in Dezful on January 29 and was buried in the city on January 5. A video of his burial has been posted on social media. His family was unaware of their son’s fate for three days, as security forces had moved his body to a morgue in Ahvaz after killing him.
As of yesterday, official institutions and officials had reported the deaths of 27 people (including Sina Ghanbari). With the deaths of four more people as described above, the death toll reaches 31.
The fate of some of the detainees is unknown. Ashkan Absavaran had informed his family of his arrest by phone on January 4, but Evin Prison officials told his family that he was missing. In addition, there is no news of another detainee, Sepideh Farhan (Farahabadi) . Prison officials have also informed a number of other families of detainees that their children are missing, even though they had previously been informed of their arrest.
Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, announced today, January 9, that various law enforcement and security agencies have arrested about 3,700 people in different parts of the country during the recent protests. According to some unofficial reports, more than 1,000 demonstrators have been arrested in Ahvaz and its surrounding cities, including 400 women in Izeh. According to the Izeh member of the Assembly, “the people arrested in the rallies are mostly teenagers and young people between the ages of 16 and 24.”
Society for the Defense of Human Rights in Iran (Member of the International Federation of Human Rights Societies)
Source: fidh
