Reactions to the Presence of Bedbugs in Several Halls of Evin Prison Continue

Reactions to the presence of "bedbugs" in some halls of Evin Prison continue. While the judiciary has denied the existence of these pests in Evin, several political activists and former prisoners have confirmed it. For the first time, Zia Nabavi, a political prisoner in Evin, reported this week on the abundance of "bedbugs" in Hall 8 of Evin Prison and some other halls. In a detailed letter, he described the insomnia of prisoners due to the presence of bedbugs, stating: "Even if someone agrees with the baseless claim of the prison guards that being imprisoned is a right for people like us, it is unlikely that they would consider the torture of enduring bedbugs as part of our punishment. May writing about this open a window for relief from these sufferings." Mr. Nabavi revealed that prisoners resort to tranquilizers and sleeping pills at night to rid themselves of these pests, which do not help. The judiciary of the Islamic Republic denied Mr. Nabavi's statements on May 14, accusing him of seeking to "change his hall in Evin Prison." However, some political and civil activists and former prisoners, including Mehdi Mahmoudian and Jamal Ameli, have confirmed Mr. Nabavi's claims in recent days. Atena Daemi, a former political prisoner, confirmed Zia Nabavi's account in an interview with Radio Farda, mentioning her own experiences with pests and vermin, including bedbugs and mice, and even snakes (in Qarchak Prison). Ms. Daemi also referred to the "psychological pressure" that this situation imposes on prisoners, both political and non-political. Jamal Ameli, a prisoner in Hall 8 of Evin, stated that he "cannot distinguish between skin wounds caused by the progression of his autoimmune disease and wounds caused by bites from bedbugs that are twice the size of ordinary bedbugs." Mr. Mahmoudian, a former prisoner, also stated that Hall 8 of Evin Prison has been "emptied" due to bedbugs, and Taleghani Hospital in Tehran announced that it would refuse to admit dialysis patients from Evin Prison for this reason. However, some media in Iran, including the "Entekhab" website, published the response of Taleghani Hospital, calling Mr. Mahmoudian's claims "utterly false." According to the deputy director of treatment at Taleghani Hospital, "We currently have ten sick prisoners hospitalized, three of whom are from Evin Prison in the dialysis section." He also denied sending a sample of "bedbugs" to the head of Evin's medical department, stating, "We had no cases of a patient from Evin Prison visiting the hospital with bedbug infestations that would require us to take and send a sample." Zia Nabavi, a prominent student activist who previously endured eight years in prison, was sentenced to one year in prison by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court for participating in a gathering in Esfand 1401 by students of Allameh University "in protest against serial poisonings." He was transferred to Evin Prison on April 7 of this year to serve his sentence.