Iran prisons head ‘sorry’ after abuse exposed
The head of Iran’s prisons apologized on Tuesday for “bitter events” in Tehran’s Evin Prison after videos leaked by hackers showed beatings of prisoners, a rare admission of abuse by authorities.
A hacking group calling itself Edalat-e Ali (Ali’s Justice) issued on social media videos that appear to be from the prison’s surveillance cameras and show guards beating prisoners and dragging an unconscious detainee on the floor. Guards and prisoners are seen fighting among themselves in other videos.
“Regarding the pictures from Evin Prison, I accept responsibility for such unacceptable behavior and pledge to try to prevent any repeat of these bitter events and to deal seriously with the wrongdoers,” Mohammad Mehdi Hajjmohammadi, head of Iran’s prisons, wrote in a tweet reported by state media.
“I apologize to God Almighty, our dear leader (Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei), the nation and honorable prison guards, whose efforts will not be ignored due to these mistakes,” Hajjmohammadi said.
Judiciary head Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei called on Iran’s prosecutor-general to “conduct a comprehensive investigation into the situation at Evin Prison and the treatment of prisoners by officers ... with speed and accuracy,” state TV reported.
Evin Prison, which mostly holds detainees facing security charges, has long been criticized by Western rights groups and it was blacklisted by the US government in 2018 for “serious human rights abuses.”
“The (Evin) authorities use threats of torture, threats of indefinite imprisonment and torture of family members, deception and humiliation, multiple daily interrogations lasting up to five or six hours, denial of medical care, and denial of family visits,” Human Rights Watch said.