Security pressure on female political prisoners in Evin Prison has intensified in recent days, while detention conditions for nationwide protest detainees in Ghezel Hesar Prison have severely deteriorated.
As part of ongoing additional restrictions, security authorities have cut off telephone access for several female political prisoners in the women’s ward of Evin Prison. Shiva Esmaeili, Marziyeh Farsi, Forough Taghipour, Zahra Safaei, Elaheh Fouladi, Golrokh Iraee, and Sakineh Parvaneh are among the detainees deprived of their right to telephone communication and contact with their families.
Details of Sentences and Status of Female Political Prisoners in Evin
- Shiva Esmaeili: 60 years old, arrested in March 2023 in Tehran; sentenced to 10 years and 6 months in prison.
- Marziyeh Farsi: 59 years old, arrested in August 2023 in Tehran; sentenced to 6 years in prison.
- Forough Taghipour: 32 years old, arrested for the second time in August 2023 in Tehran; sentenced to 6 years in prison.
- Golrokh Iraee: Arrested in October 2022; sentenced to 6 years in prison. She was previously arrested in November 2016 and served a 6-year sentence, only to be rearrested shortly after her release.
- Sakineh Parvaneh: Arrested in April 2023; sentenced to 6 years in prison. She was previously arrested in February 2020 and spent 3 years in prison.
- Zahra Safaei: 63 years old, arrested in September 2023; sentenced to 5 years in prison. Currently imprisoned for the third time, this political activist also served an 8-year sentence in the 1980s due to her support for the opposition People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
- Elaheh Fouladi: Arrested in December 2023; sentenced to 5 years in prison.
Disastrous Situation of Nationwide Protest Detainees in Ghezel Hesar
Parallel to the structural pressures in Evin Prison, accounts from Unit 3 of Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj indicate critical conditions and widespread deprivation for individuals detained during January 2026, nationwide protests.
Prisoners held in Wards 35 and 37 of this unit are denied access to minimal legal, basic, and welfare facilities. A large number of these detainees suffer from severe injuries, including broken arms, legs, jaws, and teeth, and are held in overcrowded environments without basic medical care or sanitation.
According to documented accounts, Ward 37 houses approximately 200 prisoners under extreme summer heat without any cooling systems. Frequent water cuts throughout most of the day have exacerbated the sanitary crisis in this ward, to the extent that prison officials are pressuring detainees to personally pay for water purchased from tankers.
International Appeal and Condemnation
The Iranian Resistance strongly condemns the escalation of systematic pressure on political prisoners; particularly female political prisoners held in Evin and detained protesters from the nationwide protests held in Ghezel Hesar Prison.
Issuing continuous warnings regarding the health of the prisoners, the Iranian Resistance calls for the immediate intervention of human rights organizations and the deployment of an international fact-finding mission to visit prisons in Iran, investigate the dismal conditions, and meet directly with detainees, especially women and political prisoners.
