Amnesty International Calls for 'Immediate and Unconditional Release' of Mohammad Nazari

Amnesty International has issued a statement calling for the 'immediate and unconditional' release of Mohammad Nazari, a political prisoner in Rajai Shahr prison, stating that he is 'seriously ill' due to a hunger strike. The organization urged its audience to send letters to Iranian officials demanding that they 'immediately and unconditionally release Mohammad Nazari.' Amnesty International also called for this political prisoner to have 'immediate and regular access to specialized medical care outside of prison' until his release. According to the organization, the health of this 46-year-old prisoner, who has spent half of his life in prison, has 'seriously deteriorated due to a prolonged hunger strike.' Mohammad Nazari, who is currently in his twenty-fourth year of imprisonment, has been on a hunger strike since July 30. He is demanding the application of the new Islamic Penal Code in his case. If the new Islamic Penal Code is applied, Nazari's prison sentence would be reduced to 15 years, and he, having already served 24 years, should be released. Reports indicate that on October 19, Nazari was transferred to a hospital outside of prison due to his condition resulting from the hunger strike but was returned to prison after one night 'without receiving appropriate treatment.' Meanwhile, Amnesty International reported that Nazari has 'lost 25 kilograms during the hunger strike, his blood pressure has dropped multiple times, and he has become so physically weak that he can no longer walk or speak.' The organization stated that prison officials have long ignored the recommendations of prison doctors regarding the need for Nazari to be examined by a heart specialist outside of prison. On October 18, Nazari described himself as the 'most lonely prisoner' who has 'no one to listen to him except the people.' According to this letter, Nazari has spent the past 24 years in the prisons of Mahabad, Urmia, and Rajai Shahr without leave, and although he should have been released four and a half years ago, 'invisible hands of power and security' have prevented the enforcement of the law. Nazari was arrested in 1994 at the age of 23 after returning from a short trip to Iraq in the city of Boukan in West Azerbaijan province and was sentenced to death for supporting the Kurdistan Democratic Party, which was later changed to life imprisonment. He has stated that during his detention, he was tortured, including beatings, flogging on the soles of his feet, and threats against his sister to confess to participating in a plan to assassinate several individuals close to the IRGC. In this regard, according to Amnesty International, Nazari was tried in a 'severely unfair' court for '30 minutes,' and the charges against him were 'fabricated.' Reports indicate that Nazari has lost his father, mother, and brother in recent years and has only one sister living in Boukan who cannot travel to Karaj to visit him. Nazari is a Turk and a Shia, and according to several of his former cellmates, the support of a Shia Turk for a Kurdish party has caused 'greater sensitivity' from the Urmia Intelligence Department and 'prevented his release' in recent years. In September 2012, he also sewed his lips together in protest of his situation and went on a hunger strike for 40 days.