Mai Sato, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, expressed deep concern over reports of the forced transfer of five political prisoners sentenced to death from Ward 4 of Evin Prison to Ghezel Hesar Prison.
۱) #ایران: گزارشهای نگران کنندهای دربارهی انتقال اجباری پنج مرد زندانی سیاسی محکوم به اعدام از بند چهار زندان اوین به زندان قزلحصار به دستم رسیدهاست.
— Mai Sato (@drmaisato.bsky.social) (@drmaisato) April 17, 2025
On Thursday, April 17, Sato posted on X (formerly Twitter), recalling that in her latest report to the UN Human Rights Council she had also warned about conditions in Evin Prison.
She reiterated concerns about reports of unrest and instability in the prison following the transfer of inmates, stating that this situation has created a dangerous environment.
Meanwhile, political prisoner Golrokh Iraee, in a letter from Evin Prison, warned against society’s “numbness” to news of executions, following the transfer of Hamid Hosseinnezhad Heydaranlou for execution.
Criticizing the general response to the issuance, confirmation, and enforcement of death sentences in Iran, she wrote: “We who oppose the death penalty, sitting freely in our homes or behind our desks, watching every move from our high-security phones lest we be identified.”
The UN Special Rapporteur noted the broad impact of executions, emphasizing that the harm goes beyond the direct victims—it devastates families, causes psychological harm to other prisoners, and triggers waves of grief and anxiety throughout society. She described these impacts as “immeasurable.”
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Sato concluded by highlighting the ongoing concerns over the Iranian regime’s use of the death penalty, stating that these cases once again underscore the need for oversight and accountability. She added, “I will closely follow this situation. The international community must not remain silent in the face of these events.”
Five Political Prisoners at Risk of Execution
Meanwhile, warnings have been issued that a group of political prisoners held in Evin Prison may be transferred to Ghezel Hesar.
Among them are five political prisoners—Babak Alipour, Vahid Bani-Amerian, Pouya Ghobadi, Mohammad Taghavi, and Ali-Akbar Daneshvarkar—who have been sentenced to death on charges of “supporting the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).”
Security forces had planned to transfer these five-death row political prisoners from Evin to Ghezel Hesar, but the transfer was halted due to protests from other prisoners.
If these prisoners are transferred to Ghezel Hesar, the risk of their execution increases.
Executions Double in Recent Months
In the first three months of 2025, the Iranian regime hanged at least 230 prisoners across its prisons. This figure is more than double the 110 executions recorded during the same period last year.
According to Amnesty International’s annual report, Iran accounted for over 64% of all documented executions worldwide in 2024, with at least 972 recorded cases, placing the Iranian regime at the top of the global execution ranking.
