A week after the transfer of Ali Akbar Daneshvarkar, Mohammad Taghavi, Pouya Ghobadi, Vahid Beni-Amerian, and Babak Alipour—five political prisoners sentenced to death—from Greater Tehran Prison to Ghezel Hesar Prison, there has been no information about their condition. This uncertainty about their fate has caused deep concern among their families.
Judicial and security officials, along with Ghezel Hesar prison authorities, have refused to grant visits or phone calls, or to provide any answers to the families’ inquiries.
On Thursday, August 14, the sister of Akbar Daneshvarkar stated that there has been no news from her brother or the other four political prisoners since August 6, and that before their transfer to an undisclosed location “with the intent to kill,” they were beaten.
Transfer of 5 Political Prisoners Sentenced to Death to Ghezel Hesar Prison
Amnesty International had earlier warned on August 8 that the transfer of these prisoners was carried out under circumstances raising fears that authorities intended to execute the five soon.
After moving hundreds of political prisoners from Greater Tehran Prison (Fashafuyeh) to Evin Prison, Iran’s regime separated several death-row political prisoners from others using violence and transferred them to Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj.
Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj is one of the most notorious prisons in Iran, where many death sentences for prisoners with various charges are carried out.
Ali Akbar Daneshvarkar, Babak Alipour, Mohammad Taghavi, Pouya Ghobadi, Vahid Beni-Amerian, Babak Shahbazi, and Omid Tabari-Moghadam are among the prisoners transferred to Ghezel Hesar Prison.
On November 30, 2024, Alipour, Daneshvarkar, Beni-Amarian, Ghobadi, Taghavi, and Abolhassan Montazer were sentenced to death by Judge Iman Afshari of Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court on charges of “armed rebellion through membership in anti-regime groups.”
The issuance of death sentences for these political prisoners, who have been incarcerated since fall and winter of 2023, sparked widespread reactions from political prisoners and human rights organizations.
Earlier, on August 12, the “No to Executions Tuesdays” campaign, in its 81st weekly statement, referred to the sudden transfer of these five political prisoners sentenced to death.
The signatories of this statement noted that Shahbazi and Tabari-Moghadam were also transferred to Ghezel Hesar Prison after being beaten, declaring: “This repressive action is part of an intensified crackdown on political prisoners and the unprecedented increase in executions in the country.”
According to reports by Iranian human rights organizations, around 70 prisoners across Iran’s prisons with political or security-related charges are currently at risk of having their death sentences upheld or carried out.
Additionally, following the end of the recent war with Israel, Iran’s regime has intensified its crackdown on activists and increased pressure on political prisoners.
On July 27, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk described the execution of hundreds of people in Iran following unfair and “behind closed doors” trials as deeply alarming.
