Forced Transfer of Prisoners Without Observance of Human Rights
24-June-2025
Category: Prisoners
24 June 2025
News Category: Prisoners
Breathing in Confinement – The forced and illegal transfer of political prisoners from Evin Prison to the Greater Tehran Penitentiary and other prisons around the capital has raised alarm.
According to Breathing in Confinement, the news outlet of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, on Monday afternoon, following an Israeli airstrike targeting the Evin Prison courthouse compound and its entrance gate, prison authorities carried out the forced relocation of several political prisoners without observing legal protocols.
The report states that Heydatollah Farzadi, head of Evin Prison, initially ordered prisoners through his subordinates to pack their belongings in preparation for transfer to the Greater Tehran Penitentiary. However, minutes later, he entered Ward 4 personally, accompanied by armed special forces, and threateningly announced that prisoners were not allowed to take any personal belongings and must evacuate the ward immediately.
To carry out the transfer covertly and prevent it from being seen from outside the prison, a wall between Wards 4 and 6 was demolished so that the relocation could take place internally. This act triggered strong protests from political prisoners, who responded to the coercive and unlawful transfer by chanting slogans.
During the airstrike, several prisoners were injured, and part of the prison’s medical facilities was damaged. Despite this, none of the wounded have been transferred to outside medical centres, nor have they received adequate medical attention within the prison.
Furthermore, due to severe communication restrictions, some prisoners have been unable to contact their families. The sudden transfer, without prior notice and without allowing prisoners to bring personal items, has caused serious psychological, security, and hygiene-related issues.
The Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran expresses grave concern over the health and safety of political prisoners and urges international human rights organisations—including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran—to take immediate action to visit prisons, issue independent reports, and advocate for the release of political prisoners under the current state of emergency.