Several Political Prisoners Transferred from Evin to Qazal Hessar

According to a report received by Voice of America, several political prisoners in Evin, including those in wards six and eight, have been transferred to Qazal Hessar prison. Some sources have reported the number of these prisoners as 12. An informed source reported to the Persian section of Voice of America on Sunday, September 3, that this morning, a number of political prisoners were taken to Qazal Hessar prison in support of the nationwide protests on the anniversary of the protests. This action by the judiciary officials of the Islamic Republic comes on the eve of the anniversary of the nationwide protests following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police. Additionally, the Coordinating Council of Teachers' Trade Associations reported that Jafar Ebrahimi, an inspector of this council, was taken out of his ward 'without prior notice and under the pretext of being transferred to the medical facility' and was moved from Evin to Qazal Hessar prison. At the same time, the news agency of human rights activists in Iran reported the transfer of '9 political prisoners' from Evin, citing a source close to the family of one of the prisoners, stating: 'Evin prison guards entered ward eight of this prison and took Saeed Masouri, Afshin Baymani, Hamzeh Savari, Hossein Gachlou, Masoud-Reza Ebrahimi-Nejad, Loghman Aminpour, Saman Yasin (Sidi), Mohammad Shafaei, and Matlab Ahmadian' and 'moved them to an unknown location.' On the other hand, Shahryar Shams, a civil activist in Iran, tweeted that the number of exiled prisoners is 12, naming them as 'Loghman Aminpour, Saeed Masouri, Afshin Baymani, Jafar Ebrahimi, Sepehr Imam-Jom'e, Reza Salman-Zadeh, Ahmad-Reza Haeri, Kamyar Fakour, Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb, Mohammad Shafaei, Saman Sidi (Yasin), Hamzeh Savari' and stated that they have been taken to Qazal Hessar prison. Pouya Jigarvand, a civil activist, also reminded that Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb, one of these exiled prisoners, is on the thirty-first day of his hunger strike. Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb, along with Mohsen Ghiyasi, Ali Rezaei, and Shahryar Bayat, sent a letter from Evin prison on Saturday, September 2, a copy of which was received by Voice of America, expressing solidarity with the people of Iran and emphasizing the need for collective unity, the sovereignty of the people and the law, and holding free elections until a democratic society is established in Iran. These activists and political prisoners imprisoned in ward six of Evin prison referred to the Islamic Republic as a 'dictatorial government' in their letter, stating that 'over the course of forty-four years' of this government, 'the people and homeland have been caught in difficult economic constraints, poverty, unemployment, corruption, discrimination, and misery due to the inefficiency of the country's management and the dominance of a power mafia concentrated at the top, in collaboration with security and judicial institutions.' They also noted that 'the expansion of repression, censorship, and oppression... has opened the way for the security of society under the dictatorial regime and its few supporters.' Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, previously stated in response to a question from a Voice of America Persian section reporter that the Islamic Republic has not learned from the recent protests. Earlier, John Kirby, the National Security Council's strategic communications coordinator at the White House, stated: 'After the death of Mahsa Amini and the public protests, the people of Iran should now be able to make decisions for themselves and women should be able to choose their own attire.'