Exclusive; Details of the Attack by the Evin Prison Guard on the Women's Political Prisoners' Ward

According to information obtained by the Persian section of Voice of America, the Evin prison guard attacked the women's ward on Tuesday evening, August 7, resulting in injuries to several female political prisoners. Two informed sources told Voice of America on Wednesday, August 8, that this attack occurred after the female prisoners staged a sit-in on Tuesday morning following the execution of Reza Rasayi, a political prisoner. Earlier reports indicated that at least three female political prisoners were injured; however, there is a possibility that the number of injured could be higher. According to information received by Voice of America, those involved in the attack on the female political prisoners included Hassan Ghaebadi, the head of prison inspections, and Hadi Mohammadi, the night guard officer, who attacked the prisoners with kicks and punches. It has been reported that Hadi Mohammadi used vulgar language while assaulting the prisoners. So far, Evin prison officials and the prison organization have not responded to the conditions of the women's ward and the health of the prisoners who were targeted by the prison guard's attack. In this context, Mehdi Mahmoudian, a human rights activist and former political prisoner, wrote on social media on Tuesday: 'Following the protest of the female prisoners in Evin prison against the execution of Reza Rasayi and the assault by the guard unit on the women's ward, several political prisoners were injured and transferred to the infirmary.' He added: 'Due to the interruption of phone calls, there is no news available about the condition of the prisoners in this ward.' Hossein Razagh, a civil activist and former political prisoner, also wrote on Tuesday: 'The women's ward of Evin has several political prisoners at risk of execution, and unified protests against these sentences have continued for days, but today the women's protest against the execution of Reza Rasayi was severely repressed with the entry of the guard unit, led by the prison commander. The harsh revenge against the people continues.' Meanwhile, Taghi Rahmani, the husband of Narges Mohammadi, a human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, reported on Wednesday, August 8, that 'four women were injured during this repression and were transferred to the infirmary.' Previously, female political prisoners in Evin have faced pressures from prison officials. In this regard, the office of the women's ward of Evin prison deprived 37 female political prisoners of visitation rights due to their 'night sit-in on August 3 and 6' in protest against the death sentence issued for Pakhshan Aziz, a social worker. Reza (Gholamreza) Rasayi, a 34-year-old protester from Shahin Dezh in Kermanshah province and a follower of the Yarsan faith, was sentenced to death based on 'forced confessions under torture' from several other detainees related to the killing of Nader Birami, the head of the intelligence department of Shahin Dezh, an accusation he has repeatedly denied.