Amnesty International Calls for the 'Immediate and Unconditional' Release of Soheil Arabi

Amnesty International expressed concern over the situation of Soheil Arabi, a political prisoner who has been on a hunger strike for 37 days, and called for his 'immediate and unconditional' release and access to 'full medical care.' Meanwhile, the Human Rights Defenders Center, led by Shirin Ebadi, noted the ongoing hunger strikes of several political prisoners, including Soheil Arabi, stating that judicial authorities are 'preparing for their silent death' by ignoring the rightful and legal demands of political and ideological prisoners. On Friday, October 7, Amnesty International expressed 'deep concern' for Soheil Arabi's condition and demanded his 'immediate and unconditional' release and access to 'full medical care.' Reports indicate that Mr. Arabi has been on a dry hunger strike for the past seven days, having previously been on a wet hunger strike for 30 days. Soheil Arabi began his hunger strike on August 1, demanding the release of his wife, but ended it on August 16 after she was released on bail. However, he resumed his hunger strike after his wife was threatened with having her case sent to court. Reports indicate that he has been on a dry hunger strike for the past seven days and is demanding his own release. In a letter announcing his dry hunger strike, he wrote: 'Today, October 1, marks the third year that my daughter is going to school, and I am not beside her. I have made my hunger strike dry and wet because I no longer want her to see me in prison.' This political prisoner also announced in a letter and an audio file that he is in poor physical condition, suffering from 'stomach bleeding' and has a blood pressure of 'five over six.' According to the International Human Rights Campaign in Iran, Mr. Arabi had 'eight Facebook pages under different names,' and due to his writings on those pages, he was accused of several charges, including 'insulting the Imams and the Prophet.' After his arrest in 2013, in September 2014, he was sentenced to death for 'insulting the Prophet and blasphemy' by Branch 76 of the Tehran Criminal Court, and this sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court in December of that year. However, ultimately, Branch 34 of the Supreme Court in Iran overturned Soheil Arabi's death sentence in July 2015 and sent the case for re-examination to another court. In the retrial, the charge of 'insulting the Prophet' was removed, and Mr. Arabi was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison and a two-year travel ban after his release. Meanwhile, the Human Rights Defenders Center reported in its September report on the human rights situation in Iran that the 'difficult conditions and illegal deprivations of political and ideological prisoners' have led many of them to go on hunger strikes or refuse to receive medication and treatment in recent months. The report emphasized that judicial authorities are 'preparing for their silent death' by ignoring the rightful and legal demands of political and ideological prisoners. This center referenced the hunger strikes of several political prisoners, including Mohammad Nazari, Hamzeh Darvish, and Soheil Arabi. The report also mentioned the situation of Alireza Rajai, who had to have one eye removed and part of his face taken due to 'lack of timely treatment.' According to the website Hrana, Mohammad Nazari, who is in his twenty-fourth year of imprisonment, has gone on a hunger strike demanding the application of Article 134 in his case. According to this legal article, if a person has committed multiple crimes, only the sentence for the highest punishment is considered. Mr. Nazari had previously been sentenced to death for collaborating with armed Kurdish opposition parties, which was later changed to life imprisonment. Reports indicate that 24-year-old Hamzeh Darvish was sentenced to 18 years in prison for collaborating with the 'Islamic State' group, but he has denied this accusation and has gone on a hunger strike in protest of his situation. Reza Shahabi, a board member of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran Bus Company, has also previously gone on a hunger strike but ended it conditionally on October 5. This labor activist, after introducing himself to Rajai Shahr prison due to pressure from the prosecutor's office on August 9, realized that the prosecutor's office had not accepted his medical leave granted by forensic medicine and that he would have to remain in prison for about a thousand more days. The Human Rights Defenders Center also reported that Afrin Chitsaz, a jailed journalist, ended her hunger strike on Thursday, October 6, with the 'promises' of the special prosecutor of Evin prison and the follow-up of the head of Evin prison. Afrin Chitsaz, a jailed journalist, had been on a hunger strike since September 3 in protest against the prevention of her release on the date announced by the judiciary. According to this report, the prosecutor's office did not consider the time Ms. Chitsaz spent in the hospital as part of her prison time. In this context, the Supreme Court of Iran confirmed the death sentence for insulting the Prophet of Islam.