Three Prisoners of Conscience Launch Hunger Strike

Three prisoners of conscience Mehdi Khodaie, Arash Sadeqi, and Ahmad Shah Rezaie have launched a hunger strike to protest the deaths of Haleh Sahabi and Hoda Saber, reported Daneshjoo News.

The three political prisoners have been on hunger strike since June 5th. They were supposed to end their strike on June 12th but decided to continue in the wake of Hoda Saber’s death.

According to reports received from inside Evin prison, in the wake of Hoda Saber’s death, there have been growing concerns about the health and safety of the striking political prisoners.

Mehdi Khodaie, a human rights activist and the former secretary of the city of Rey’s Islamic Student Union in Azad University was arrested on March 3, 2009 by the IRGC agents and transferred to ward 2A of Evin prison (under the control of the IRGC). He was subjected to the most severe pressure and duress for months in order to make false confessions. He was tried in September 2010 in branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Moghiseh. He was sentenced to three years in prison. The sentence was upheld by the Appeals Court.

Back in March 2010, Khodaie was sentenced to four years in prison by branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Salavati. He was charged with, “Acting against National Security through holding gatherings” and “Propaganda against the regime”. This sentence, too, was upheld by the Appeals Court. Overall, the student activist has to serve serve years in prison.

Arash Sadeghi, a member of Mir Hossein Mousavi’s 2009 presidential campaign and a member of the Central Council of Allameh Tabatabai University’s Islamic Student Union was sentenced to five years in prison after several arrests, continued assaults and beatings, and transfers to solitary confinement cells in ward 209 of Evin prison. Moreoever, as a result of the raid conducted by the Islamic Republic’s security agents on Arash Sadeghi’s home to arrest him, his mother suffered a heart attack and died.

Ahmad Shah Rezaie was sentenced to three years in prison. The sentence was reduced to 18 months by the Appeals Court.

Khosro Dalirsani, another prisoner of conscience in Evin prison is one of the prisoners who had been on hunger strike with Hoda Saber. There is no news about his fate after he ended his hunger strike, and there is growing concern about his health.

Translation of the Daneshjoo News report by Siavosh Jalili, Persian2English