Amnesty International Says Iran Is Torturing Prominent Rights Activist

Amnesty International says Iran is torturing prize-winning rights activist Narges Mohammadi by denying her proper healthcare in reprisal for her campaigning.

The rights group said Tuesday that Mohammadi, who suffers from lung and heart conditions, was taken to the infirmary of the notorious Qarchak women's prison on June 23 after experiencing shortness of breath and an irregular heartbeat. (https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/5775/2022/en/)

Health and sanitary conditions at Qarchak, located forty kilometers to the south of the capital Tehran, are very poor in comparison with prisons such as Evin where most political prisoners and prisoners of conscience are usually held.

Since her return to prison from hospital, prison authorities "have been denying Mohammadi some of her required medication,” Amnesty added. 

Her husband Taghi Rahmani, who is based in Paris, accused the prison authorities earlier this week of deliberately withholding medication sent by her family to treat a lung condition.

In a five-minute trial in late January, she was sentenced to eight years in jail and 70 lashes by Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court, on trumped-up political charges. 

Mohammadi, who was arrested in November last year, has been to jail several times over the past two decades. She was freed from Evin Prison in September 2020 after serving more than five years when she had no contact with her husband and children for long periods of time.

Persecution of human rights and political activists and executions have increased since hardliner president Ebrahim Raisi took office last August.