On the evening of Saturday, January 11, Farzaneh Bijanipour, a prisoner held in Ward 6 of Qarchak Prison, passed away due to the prison doctor’s refusal to provide adequate medical care. Prison authorities prevented her transfer to external medical facilities.
Farzaneh Bijanipour, incarcerated for non-political offenses in Ward 6, reported feeling chills and severe discomfort on Saturday evening and sought help at the prison infirmary. However, the prison doctor dismissed her condition as a feigned illness. Hours later, when her health deteriorated further, her cellmates brought her back to the infirmary, where she was given nothing more than a painkiller.
Later that night, Ms. Bijanipour lost consciousness. Despite being taken to the infirmary again, she died shortly after. Prison authorities delayed transferring her to a hospital until after her death.
In response, on Sunday, January 12, inmates in Ward 6 staged a hunger strike, refusing food in protest against the prison medical staff’s negligence and the administration’s failure to provide proper care.
Once again, the NCRI Women’s Committee renews its call on international human rights bodies and organizations to dispatch an independent mission to inspect Khamenei’s prisons in Iran and interview the prisoners, especially the female political prisoners.
