A young Iranian's plight in Turkey underscores horrors of refugee life

35-year-old Iranian refugee Sina Rostami, who is detained in a Turkish deportation camp for not having proper documentation, is routinely awakened in the morning with the strike of a jailer's baton.

Sina is the portrait of the Iranian youth. Opposed to the theocratic establishment, he dreams of a better life in the West, but what he has experienced in his pursuit of freedom illustrates the grim reality of what many Iranian refugees face.

“The way they treat us here is like we’re not humans,” said Sina, speaking to Iran International.

Sina’s sleeping quarters that he shares with six people and the washrooms have no lights. Sina said he often has to wait 12 to 14 hours before he is permitted to recreation outdoors.

“I wasn’t even registered for food (rations) until recently and other Iranians would bring me food—which is not really edible anyway,” he said.

At the height of the Woman, Life, Freedom uprisings sparked by the death of a young woman Mahsa Jina Amini in Iranian morality police custody in September 2022, Sina was one of tens of thousands of demonstrators arrested.

Sina described 18 days of interrogation, saying the night before his transfer to Tehran's notorious Evin prison that he was threatened with death unless he confessed. The next day he was blindfolded and threatened more.

"Prepare for your execution. Write your will if you have anything to say," Sina said his Iranian interrogators told him in prison.

He felt life wasn't safe anymore after being released and decided two years later it was time to leave his homeland for new beginnings - but what awaited him was worse, he said.

Smugglers and victimizing refugees

After escaping Iran on a perilous journey in June 2024, Sina initially sought refuge in Turkey. He and a friend paid to make their way to Greece en route to the West when he was detained by Greek authorities.

Sina said he and his friend from Iran were searched by two armed men, wearing what he described as commando fatigues. They were then forced onto a pickup truck where they were dropped off at police headquarters.

After being questioned by Greek police, Sina said authorities bundled him and his friend onto another truck manned by a group of masked men. Sina said they were smugglers.

They were beaten with metal pipes, he said, and what happened next left Sina scarred for life. Sina said he was gang raped by the smugglers.

It happened at gunpoint, Sina said, adding that his hands were tied behind his back.

The smugglers took him and other refugees across the Evros River and back into Turkey to Istanbul.

Sina’s therapist, Azadeh Afsahi who was put in touch with him through other Iranian dissidents aware of his case, has been connecting with him since he was smuggled back into Turkey in June.

Sina was staying in insect-infested, illegal hostels until he was caught by Turkish authorities while trying to see a lawyer to legally leave the country.

“The trauma that he is enduring every day and now that he was put in camp in this deportation camp, all of those memories are coming back to him,” Afsahi told Iran International, “He is diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and severe depression. He has nightmares. He can't sleep."

Afsahi, who is of Iranian origin and lives in California, said Sina’s life is in danger either by suicide or death at the hands of Iranian authorities should he be repatriated. She communicates with Sina by telephone.

“He has suicidal thoughts. He is very depressed," said Afsahi who made the assessment of Sina as a clinical therapist.

"I have his permission to talk about this. Usually, I don't talk about what's happening in therapeutic sessions because it's against confidentiality. But the reason I'm talking right now is because his life is in danger," she added.

The conditions in the deportation camp only further put his life in peril, and he feels unsafe in that environment, fearing he could become a victim of sexual assault again, according to Afsahi.

"He thinks that is going to happen again," added Afsahi.

Sina is speaking out, using his real name to raise awareness on the plight of Iranian refugees. It's a rare move as most Iranian refugees are too afraid to come forward given their precarious situation.

39,000 Iranians were registered as refugees in Turkey in 2019, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency.

Afsahi advocates to help save Sina's life and to push for change.

"For the three years that I've been working with the refugees in Turkey, the government is resembling the Islamic Republic, said Afsahi "I want the curtains to be open so we can see what the Turkish government is doing to the Iranian refugees."

Afsahi feels Sina's status under international and Turkish law as a refugee is being ignored.

In the meantime, Sina's life hangs in the balance, not knowing how much longer he has to live in the camp or if he could possibly be deported back to Iran.

"I want people to know what is happening that's why I am allowing my voice and name to come out," said Sina.