Death of Two Female Prisoners in Qarchak Prison in Varamin and Pardis Prison in Karaj Due to Denial of Hospital Transfer
Call on the International Fact-Finding Mission to Inspect Women’s Prisons, Including the Notorious Qarchak Prison
On Tuesday, September 16, 2025, political prisoner Somayeh Rashidi, held in Qarchak Prison, was finally transferred to Mofatteh Hospital in Varamin after suffering repeated seizures and a prolonged delay in medical care. Doctors describe her condition as critical and her level of consciousness as extremely low.
Somayeh Rashidi had collapsed multiple times in the prison ward due to seizures, but a prison staff member known as “Mirza Baqi,” who poses as a physician, repeatedly dismissed her condition as feigned. Her current level of consciousness is reported to be below 5, raising grave concern among medical staff for her survival.
On Friday, September 19, 2025, Jamileh Azizi, a prisoner accused of financial offenses and mother of two, died in Qarchak Prison. After showing signs of a heart attack, she was delayed in being sent to the prison infirmary, where she was briefly examined before being returned to her ward. Following her return, Azizi’s condition rapidly deteriorated, and she passed away.
Earlier, on September 12, 2025, Maryam Shahraki, also a prisoner for financial offenses in Fardis Prison in Karaj, experienced severe chest pain and went to the prison infirmary. Staff gave her a few pills and sent her back to the ward. Within hours, her condition worsened, and she died before she could be transferred to a hospital.
The Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran warns about the lives of female prisoners, particularly the situation of Somayeh Rashidi, and calls on all international human rights and women’s rights bodies to intervene and take immediate action to secure the release of sick female prisoners and ensure their access to medical care and treatment.
The NCRI Women’s Committee also emphasizes the necessity of the International Fact-Finding Mission to inspect the conditions of women prisoners, particularly in the notorious Qarchak Prison.
National Council of Resistance of Iran – Women’s Committee
21 September 2025
