Under the title "The Horrors of Prisons in Iran: Audio Recording Exposes," the Al Arabiya website reported that following numerous reports about the catastrophic conditions in Iranian prisons, the outbreak of the novel coronavirus has exacerbated the situation. Political prisoner Alia Matlabzadeh, held in Evin Prison in Tehran, released an audio recording in which she announces that at least six female prisoners have contracted COVID-19 without receiving any medical care or medication. She emphasized that prison officials do not care about their health conditions.
Matlabzadeh disclosed that the virus outbreak has led to chaos within the prison and affected the mental state of the female prisoners. In the recording shared by her husband, Sedra Abdollahi, she mentioned that tests confirmed three female prisoners are in solitary confinement with COVID-19, receiving no treatment other than basic fluids. She indicated that the door was locked on them and confirmed that there are three other female prisoners in critical health.
She pointed out that Evin Prison in Tehran is one of the most neglected in terms of medical care and health services.
### "You Can Die Here Too"
Describing an incident, the prisoner said she spoke with the assistant to the prison chief who entered the ward. She told him, "You have neglected everyone here and locked the doors for them to die." He responded, "People are dying outside. What’s the difference? You all can die too," referring to the catastrophic epidemic situation Iran is experiencing in various regions.
This prisoner asserted that in addition to the deprivation of medical care and treatment services, female prisoners are denied leave and access to phones to communicate with their families.
### Deaths Inside Prisons
It is noteworthy that among the female prisoners who contracted COVID-19 are Zainab Hemrani and Sepideh Kashani, the latter being an environmental activist imprisoned since the winter of 2018. The lack of medical care and treatment for prisoners in Iran, alongside torture and mistreatment, has led to the deaths of Behnam Mohajobi and Sasan Naknufs, both political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Iran.
It should be mentioned that Alireza Zali, the head of the coronavirus control center in Tehran, announced a rapid spread of the Indian Delta variant amid a 24% increase in virus infections. He explained last week that the age demographics of the infected have changed, coinciding with a 15.4% increase in the number of patients transferred to intensive care units in Tehran hospitals, raising concerns about the risk of hospital beds being filled again. He emphasized that vaccination for the age group of 50 to 60 years must begin quickly. Meanwhile, outgoing Iranian President Hassan Rouhani acknowledged that the Indian variant of the coronavirus has spread to new areas in the country, worsening the situation compared to before.
