Deliberate Neglect of Medical Care for Somayeh Rashidi in Qarchak Prison
20-September-2025
Category: Prisoners
20 September 2025
News group: Prisoners –
Breathing in Confinement – Somayeh Rashidi, a political prisoner held in Qarchak Prison, Varamin, is in critical condition due to a serious delay in being transferred to hospital.
According to Breathing in Confinement, the news outlet of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, Ms Rashidi, who suffers from epilepsy and severe headaches, has repeatedly visited the prison infirmary. However, instead of receiving the essential medications, she has only been given sedatives. In recent days, she has experienced multiple seizures, yet prison officials have refused to transfer her promptly to medical centres.
Reports indicate that her delayed transfer to hospital resulted in a significant drop in her level of consciousness, and doctors have expressed grave concern over her condition. This situation is a clear instance of “deliberate neglect of a prisoner’s health,” which violates both the Prison Organisation’s own regulations and Iran’s international obligations regarding the treatment of prisoners.
Prison authorities and relevant institutions bear direct responsibility for safeguarding prisoners’ health and providing medical care. Denying prisoners access to appropriate treatment constitutes inhuman treatment and amounts to torture or ill-treatment.
It should be recalled that Somayeh Rashidi had previously been arrested and imprisoned in 2022 and 2023 for her political activities.