The U.S. Expresses Concern Over Reports of Assault on Narges Mohammadi

The U.S. State Department expressed anger and discontent over reports of the assault on Narges Mohammadi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and other female political prisoners by agents at Evin Prison. The Office of Democracy and Human Rights at the U.S. State Department described the reports about the assault on Ms. Mohammadi and her fellow inmates, who peacefully gathered in protest against the execution of Reza Rasayi, as disturbing. The U.S. State Department also called on the Iranian government to end the repression of human rights defenders and to release all prisoners who have been unjustly detained. Narges Mohammadi's family and human rights organizations have confirmed that security agents violently disrupted the gathering of female political prisoners at Evin Prison on August 7. The statements from the U.S. State Department were released a day after a group of human rights activists called for an international investigation into the assault on these prisoners in a joint statement. The statement from the activists was published in several European newspapers, including Libération in France and El País in Spain. Meanwhile, Maryam Yahyavi, a political prisoner at Evin Prison, confirmed the reports of the raid in a letter from prison published on Sunday, stating: 'They gathered their strength in their arms and brought it down on our heads and lives.' Ms. Yahyavi also emphasized that her fellow inmates have 'allied and sworn' to continue their resistance until the death penalty is abolished.