Zia Nabavi's Lawyer Says His Client Acquitted in Case Known as 'Bedbug'

Amir Reisiian, the lawyer of political prisoner Zia Nabavi, announced that his client has been acquitted in the case known as 'bedbug' at Evin Prison. This lawyer stated on Sunday, December 4, that the court convened to address the charges against Zia Nabavi for 'spreading falsehoods' in Section 1207 of the Criminal Court and ruled in favor of Mr. Nabavi's acquittal. According to Mr. Reisiian, after several hearings and investigations, the court ultimately did not find the statements made by Zia Nabavi regarding the presence of bedbugs in Ward 8 of Evin Prison to be false, leading to his acquittal. Zia Nabavi, who is serving a one-year prison sentence for protesting the poisoning of schoolgirls, had previously published a note from inside Evin Prison in May, discussing the presence of bedbugs in Ward 8 and the resulting physical and mental health issues for the inmates. Despite some political and civil activists, including Mehdi Mahmoudian and Jamal Ameli, corroborating Mr. Nabavi's claims, the Iranian judiciary denied Mr. Nabavi's statements on May 24, accusing him of seeking to 'change his ward in Evin Prison.' Shortly thereafter, Mr. Nabavi's lawyer reported that 'prison officials had removed him from his ward and, by the decision of the prison disciplinary council, had transferred him to solitary confinement for a week as punishment.' Amir Reisiian also mentioned in September that a court session was held for Zia Nabavi on charges of 'informing about the presence' of bedbugs in Evin Prison. Mehdi Mahmoudian had also been sentenced to prison for informing about the presence of bedbugs in Evin. At that time, Mr. Mahmoudian wrote on social media that Ward 8 of Evin Prison had been 'emptied' due to bedbugs, and Taleghani Hospital in Tehran announced that it would refuse to accept dialysis patients from Evin Prison for this reason. However, some media outlets in Iran, including the 'Entekhab' website, published the response of Taleghani Hospital, labeling Mr. Mahmoudian's claims as 'utterly false.' In early October, Mehdi Mahmoudian announced that he had been sentenced in absentia to eight months in prison for 'propaganda against the regime,' along with a two-year ban on membership in political parties and groups, a two-year ban on using smartphones, and a two-year exit ban from the country.