Death of Jewish Prisoner in Iran; Tanaz Kolahchian: His Jewish Identity Increased Pressures and Hardships

Following the death of Faramarz Javidzad in Evin Prison, his lawyer told Voice of America that his case was not political, but because he was Jewish, there was more pressure on him. Tanaz Kolahchian stated in an interview with Voice of America: "Mr. Javidzad's case was neither political nor security-related, but the opposing parties staged a scenario to make him the main accused and placed the main burden of the case on him with charges related to religious beliefs." This lawyer emphasized that "Mr. Javidzad's Jewish identity led to increased pressures and hardships against him" and added: "His medical needs had been presented to the authorities from the beginning of his arrest and during the court stages, and there was no ambiguity about it, and the necessity of attention to his physical health had been repeatedly emphasized, but the case investigator neither paid attention to this issue nor agreed to our request for his medical leave or bail release." Faramarz Javidzad, a Jewish citizen imprisoned in Iran suffering from "heart disease, diabetes, and stomach bleeding," experienced "stomach bleeding and severe drop in blood pressure" on Friday, September 22, and died in Evin. Human rights sources have cited the lack of medical care as the reason for his death. The public relations office of the Tehran Provincial Prisons Organization denied the cause of death, calling it "media manipulation by hostile outlets" and claimed that this prisoner had been sent to medical centers outside the prison five times due to a history of gastrointestinal disease and was transferred to the infirmary on October 1 "after his condition worsened" and despite medical interventions, he "passed away." Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, said on Monday, October 3, regarding this matter to the Persian section of Voice of America: "We have no documents indicating that he had permanent legal residency." The U.S. State Department had previously stated in response to reports about Faramarz Javidzad's death in Evin Prison to a Voice of America reporter: "We are aware of reports regarding the death of an individual in one of Iran's prisons and are seeking additional information. Due to privacy considerations, we will not comment further at this time."