Reza Shahabi has been on hunger strike for eight days

The Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company announced on Wednesday, August 16, that Reza Shahabi, a imprisoned member of this labor organization, is on hunger strike in Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj. In a report published on the Telegram page of this syndicate, Mr. Shahabi began his hunger strike eight days ago. One of the close associates of this labor activist also confirmed his hunger strike in an interview with Radio Farda. Previously, according to the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, the prosecutor's office had informed Mr. Shahabi's wife that this labor activist must remain in prison for another 17 months. Reza Shahabi has been sentenced to another year in prison in a new case that the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company has called 'fabrication of charges.' Additionally, the prosecutor's office has counted five months of the time that Mr. Shahabi was on medical leave, confirmed by forensic medicine, as 'absence.' The Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company pointed out that 'the prosecutor's claim of five months of absence from Shahabi's six-year prison sentence' is while he had seen 'the letter of freedom and completion of his six-year sentence dated September 9, 2015, in his prison file' upon returning to prison. Following pressure from the prosecutor's office to return him to prison, Mr. Shahabi reported to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj on August 9. Reports indicate that judicial authorities have repeatedly pressured this labor activist to return to prison over the past year. Mr. Shahabi was arrested by security forces on June 12, 2010, and after 19 months in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin Prison, he was sentenced by the Islamic Revolutionary Court to six years in prison, five years of prohibition from union activities, and a fine of 7.5 million tomans. According to the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, 'Reza Shahabi suffered serious injuries to his neck and back due to violence from security forces during his arrest and also due to long and exhausting interrogations.' Last week, this labor organization noted the judicial authorities' opposition to Mr. Shahabi's treatment and his three hunger strikes, stating that 'this union member was transferred to the hospital due to his deteriorating physical condition as a result of the hunger strike and underwent surgery on his neck and back in two stages, and was sent on medical leave confirmed by forensic medicine, indicating that treatment and recovery should take place outside of prison.' So far, the judicial authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran have not responded to the statement of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company.