What We Know About the Death of Sara Deldar, Former Political Prisoner

Reports indicate that Sara Deldar, a former political prisoner from Rasht and an activist from Gilan, has died due to what has been described as 'infections resulting from pellet gun injuries' and 'serious liver and kidney problems that were exacerbated in prison.' This report was first published by the 'Bidar Zani' website, and a former cellmate of this political prisoner, who preferred to remain anonymous for security reasons, confirmed the news of her death in an interview with Radio Farda. Sara Deldar was accused of 'promoting corruption and prostitution' for posting images of herself without adhering to mandatory hijab in social media and 'insulting sacred values' for tweeting about Qassem Soleimani, leading to a sentence of over one year and three months in prison. According to a source interviewed by Radio Farda, she had told her cellmates that she was continuously present at protests in Rasht during the nationwide protests of 1401 and was helping the injured. Her former cellmate also added, 'She boldly shouted against the Iranian government in prison.' After her arrest, Sara Deldar was sentenced to one year, three months, and six days in Rasht's Lakan prison, and after serving more than six months, she was granted conditional release. Her former cellmate stated that 'Sara Deldar's physical condition worsened due to the prison authorities' refusal to grant her medical leave, ultimately leading to the death of this civil activist.' She added that Deldar had been imprisoned for more than six months in Lakan prison due to the lack of bail, and after her release, she faced 'physical weakness, spleen enlargement, edema, and ascites leading to liver and kidney failure, along with infections from remaining pellets in her body.' According to her former cellmate, during her time in Lakan prison, 'multiple pellets remained in Sara Deldar's legs, head, and neck, and due to her pains, she always took painkillers from the infirmary and suffered from insomnia.' In her last Instagram post on July 1 of this year, she mentioned these problems, stating that other political prisoners, after being released, like her, 'have developed underlying diseases.' In this post, she wrote that since the second month of her imprisonment, her illness had worsened. According to some reports, this former political prisoner had been arrested despite having a 'serious liver problem' and 'the need for a transplant.' Sara Deldar had told her cellmates that she had been subjected to 'physical and psychological violence' during her arrest in late spring 1402 and during interrogation. Informed sources also told Radio Farda that the family of this former political prisoner faced pressure from security agencies after her funeral not to hold a memorial for her. In recent years, several political and ideological prisoners with underlying health conditions have lost their lives due to prison conditions and the deterioration of health problems while incarcerated. The Islamic Republic of Iran has never taken responsibility for the deaths of these individuals and has always claimed that they received appropriate and timely medical care. The Iran Human Rights Campaign reported on August 31 of this year that between June 10 and August 25 of this year, at least 34 political prisoners in various prisons in Iran were 'deliberately' deprived of access to adequate medical services.