They Said, 'Come to the Paradise of Masoumeh'; Interview with Vahid Sayyadi Nasiri's Sister

Vahid Sayyadi Nasiri, a political prisoner, reportedly died on Wednesday after being transferred to a hospital in Qom, according to his family. Elham Sayyadi Nasiri, the sister of this political prisoner, confirmed the news in an interview with Radio Farda, stating that Mr. Nasiri had been on a hunger strike for several days. Vahid Sayyadi Nasiri was arrested in the summer of 2015 for his activities on Facebook, accused of insulting sacred beliefs and leadership, as well as propaganda against the regime. He was initially sentenced to eight years in prison, but after a Nowruz pardon, his sentence was reduced to two and a half years. He was released last Esfand after completing his sentence, but a few months later, he was arrested again, this time by the intelligence department of Qom. Since October of this year, Vahid Sayyadi Nasiri had been on a hunger strike in protest against the failure to implement the principle of separating prisoners based on their crimes; he had previously gone on hunger strikes at least twice in protest against his conditions in prison. The Islamic Republic authorities have not yet reacted to this news. In the interview, Elham Sayyadi Nasiri described the circumstances of her brother's death, stating that they were informed to search for him in two hospitals and later were told to come to the courthouse to retrieve his body. She expressed uncertainty about the details of his death and mentioned that he had been on a hunger strike for 50 days, protesting his unjust detention and the conditions in prison. She noted that he had been transferred to Qom prison after being held in Fashafouyeh prison, where he faced poor conditions. Despite being hospitalized for nearly two weeks, his health deteriorated significantly. The family remains unclear about where to retrieve his body, as they have not been given specific information. Elham described her brother's health as severely compromised, mentioning a previous incident of gastrointestinal bleeding that had gone untreated for several days. Vahid had been in prison for two years, with only a few months of freedom before his latest arrest. His case had not yet reached the court, and he had not been assigned a lawyer. The family is now left in uncertainty about the circumstances of his death and the retrieval of his body.