Transfer of Reza Mohammad Hosseini to Solitary Confinement Following Disclosure of Pressure on Political Prisoners; Yashar Ghazai Transferred to Evin Prison

An informed source told the Persian section of Voice of America about the transfer of Reza Mohammad Hosseini to solitary confinement at Qazal Hessar Prison and the transfer of Yashar Ghazai, a political activist, to Evin Prison to continue serving his sentence. According to this knowledgeable source, Reza Mohammad Hosseini, a political prisoner, was transferred to solitary confinement at Qazal Hessar Prison in Alborz Province on Sunday, June 27, following his disclosure regarding the intensification of pressures on political prisoners and water rationing. According to an audio file obtained by the Persian section of Voice of America, Reza Mohammad Hosseini stated that at 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 26, prison officials, including Qobadi, the deputy of Qazal Hessar Prison, called him and said they had received an order from the IRGC intelligence, signed by Niri, the supervising judge over political prisoners, for his transfer to solitary confinement due to the 'audio file' he had released in recent days about 'prison problems, surveillance, censorship, and water rationing' as well as a previous file regarding pressure on him and his family. Reza Mohammad Hosseini emphasized in this audio file that 'solitary confinement is a form of torture,' and therefore, 'I will not go.' According to the informed source, following Reza Mohammad Hosseini's refusal to be transferred to solitary confinement, on Sunday, officials at Qazal Hessar Prison forcibly took this constitutional monarchist political prisoner to solitary confinement. The informed source also reported that following the transfer of Reza Mohammad Hosseini to solitary confinement, Zartosht Ahmadinejad, another political prisoner, protested this action by the prison officials, and they also took him to solitary confinement. According to a previous exclusive report by Voice of America, Reza Mohammad Hosseini, Zartosht Ahmadinejad, and Mostafa Ramazani had reported the intensification of pressures on political prisoners, including the repeated cutting of their phone calls and water rationing for all prisoners at Qazal Hessar Prison. Additionally, Reza Mohammad Hosseini had previously warned in an audio file about the economic pressures from the Islamic Republic officials for 'rehabilitating' political prisoners and emphasized that IRGC officials had prevented him from signing a power of attorney for the inheritance of his only paternal inheritance so that he could not cover his expenses in prison. The informed source also told Voice of America that Yashar Ghazai, a monarchist political prisoner, was transferred to Evin Prison on June 26 to serve his sentence after about a year and a half of medical leave and despite repeated visits to clarify his case. Yashar Ghazai was among those arrested during the nationwide protests in November 2019 and had a prior history of imprisonment. He was injured during the fire at Evin Prison in 2022. Despite repeated protests and warnings from human rights organizations regarding the pressures on political prisoners by the Islamic Republic in Iran, numerous reports of human rights violations of prisoners continue to be published. Recently, the wife of Mohammad Nourizad, a political prisoner held in Evin Prison, reported his punitive transfer to solitary confinement after 'protesting against the overpricing of fruits and vegetables' to prisoners and 'open theft' from them.