Aida Younesi: The hunger strike of Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi will continue until the anniversary of Mahsa's death

Aida Younesi, the sister of Ali Younesi, announced on Thursday, September 14, 2023, via a post on X (formerly Twitter), that her brother and Amir Hossein Moradi are on a hunger strike in Evin Prison until the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death. Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi, two elite students from Sharif University of Technology, were each sentenced to 16 years in prison by the Islamic Revolutionary Court after their arrest on April 10, 2020, with 10 years of that sentence being enforceable. Aida Younesi stated that her brother and Amir Hossein Moradi will be on a 'dry hunger strike' from Thursday until Saturday, September 16, which marks the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death while in the custody of the morality police. On the third anniversary of their arrest, on April 11, 2022, Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi expressed their certainty about the 'realization of a free Iran' in a message from prison. In a message announced via prison phone, they recalled their arrest on April 10, 2020, which included 'beatings,' emphasizing that they spent over two years in solitary confinement before being transferred to the general prison ward in their third year. These imprisoned students stated: 'Like all the young people who were killed in the streets, we have no wish other than the freedom of Iran.' They added: 'Through the sufferings and hardships of these years, we are certain that the moments of true joy, the dawn of the beautiful morning of freedom, and the realization of a free Iran are approaching.' Amir Hossein Moradi, a physics student and silver medalist in the national astronomy Olympiad, and Ali Younesi, a computer engineering student and silver medalist in the national astronomy Olympiad and gold medalist in the international astronomy Olympiad, have been the subject of international human rights organizations' repeated reactions regarding their continued detention and the pressures on them for forced confessions. On December 7, 2022, in a message from prison on Student Day, Amir Hossein Moradi and Ali Younesi stated that they believe 'the moment of reunion is near.' Five political prisoners also announced on Thursday in a letter that they will go on a hunger strike on Saturday, September 16, in 'protest against the continuation of the repressive, anti-national, and anti-women policies' of the Islamic Republic and in 'solidarity with the demands and will of women, men, and the youth' on the anniversary of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini's death. This letter, signed by Mostafa Tajzadeh, Hossein Razaghi, Saeed Madani, Mehdi Mahmoudian, and Mohammad Najafi, was published on the Instagram page of Hossein Razaghi on Thursday, September 14. The signatories described the 'glorious uprising of women, life, freedom' as 'a new chapter in the struggles of the people for democracy, development, and the realization of the right to self-determination of the nation' and referred to the 'sacred movement of Mahsa' as 'a great shock to the pillars of the entire crisis-ridden system and all defenders of the status quo.'