Hunger Strike by 19 Female Political Prisoners in Protest at the Death of Somayeh Rashidi and Inhumane Conditions in Qarchak Prison
30-September-2025
Category: Prisoners
30 September 2025
News group: Women – Prisoners –
Breathing in Confinement – Nineteen female political prisoners have launched a hunger strike in protest at the deliberate negligence and delay by officials that led to their cellmate’s death, and in response to the inhumane conditions in Qarchak Prison.
According to Breathing in Confinement, the news outlet of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, on Tuesday, 30 September 2025, nineteen female political prisoners in Qarchak Prison, Varamin, began a protest action in solidarity with their deceased cellmate, Somayeh Rashidi, by going on a two-day hunger strike. The action is a response to the authorities’ blatant disregard for the prison’s degrading living conditions and their evasion of responsibility for Rashidi’s death.
Qarchak Prison has repeatedly been criticised by human-rights organisations for conditions including severe overcrowding and confined space, inadequate ventilation and lighting, unsafe drinking water, poor food quality, and lack of medical care. Rashidi’s death—caused by neglect by prison medical staff—stands as clear evidence of systematic indifference to prisoners’ basic rights, which, under both Iran’s own laws and international covenants, apply to all those deprived of liberty.
The women are also protesting violent raids by prison guards, arbitrary transfers to solitary confinement, and neglect of sick prisoners. In a statement, they called for an end to these practices and demanded the transfer of female political prisoners to Evin Prison—a request previously endorsed by more than 150 former political prisoners.
This hunger strike is not only a cry for justice for their deceased cellmate; it is also a symbol of resistance to injustice and a demand for the human rights that must be guaranteed to every person, regardless of status or charges. Ignoring these voices will only prolong suffering and perpetuate human-rights violations in Iran’s prisons.