Asal Mohammadi: I am willing to testify about the conditions of Sepideh Gholian and Ismail Bakhshi in prison

Asal Mohammadi, a student activist and member of the editorial board of the "Gham" magazine, announced that she is ready to testify about what she has seen and heard regarding Ismail Bakhshi and Sepideh Gholian at the detention center of the Intelligence Department in Ahvaz. According to reports on social media, Ms. Mohammadi, who was arrested in connection with the strike of Haft Tappeh sugarcane workers, was released from Sepidar prison in Ahvaz after about a month on a bail of 400 million tomans. She stated, "I witnessed the suffering of my friends" and wrote: "On the sixth day of my detention in Ahvaz, I was transferred to a small, damp cell where seven prisoners were held. One of them was Sepideh Gholian, and I paused to recognize her face. I couldn't believe how much her cheerful and lively face had withered and become thin in such a short time." Asal Mohammadi added: "She still had bruises on her neck and scratches on her hands. She told me about the oppression she faced during those 21 days, and seeing her in that condition confirmed her words." Ms. Mohammadi also noted that she witnessed long hours of interrogation of Sepideh Gholian, which occurred from 10 AM until late at night, almost every day. A member of the editorial board of Gham magazine added, "I could hear the screams and insults from her interrogator in the adjacent room. I witnessed a day when they pressured her so much for a false confession that she was clawing at her beautiful face and wishing for death." Sepideh Gholian, who was arrested along with Ismail Bakhshi and 17 other Haft Tappeh sugarcane workers on November 27 and was imprisoned for about a month, described the torture she and Ismail Bakhshi experienced on her Twitter page on the 19th. Ms. Gholian stated that the intelligence agents wrote: "Recalling 30 days of brutal and inhumane behavior can still wet her eyes and shake her body. During the arrest, Ismail Bakhshi tried to pull me out from under the blows of the agents, but he was beaten so badly that he lost consciousness." Sepideh Gholian has expressed her willingness to testify about herself and Ismail Bakhshi in a fair court regarding these tortures. So far, the authorities of the Islamic Republic have not reacted to Ms. Gholian's statements. Meanwhile, Asal Mohammadi wrote in part about Ismail Bakhshi that she heard his "continuous coughing and severe shortness of breath" from the adjacent interrogation room and the mockery of the agents who said, "He's filming, he's better off than us." She pointed out that "at least minimal medical care" was denied to Mr. Bakhshi, adding: "On the day I went out for fresh air in the detention yard, I heard the screams and insults and slanders of the interrogator towards Ismail." Ismail Bakhshi, who was imprisoned for 25 days in the Intelligence Department detention center in Ahvaz, announced a few days after his release on his Instagram page that during his detention, he was beaten and "tortured" to the extent that "for 72 hours I couldn't move from my place in my cell, and I was beaten so much that even the pain of sleeping was unbearable for me." His statements have received widespread attention on social media, and in addition to the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, the government of Hassan Rouhani and the parliament have also reacted to this news, announcing that committees have been formed to investigate these claims. So far, various officials in the government, judiciary, and parliament have stated that the torture of Ismail Bakhshi is an allegation and a lie. However, Mahmoud Alavi, the Minister of Intelligence, has not yet responded to this labor activist's invitation to participate in a live televised debate. The denial of the torture issue comes at a time when Mr. Bakhshi recently told the people that he has not lied to them.