The elite students, Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi, announced their hunger strike through a brief message from Evin Prison. They stated that they had started the hunger strike from September 13, the anniversary of Zhina Amini’s arrest by security forces during the Guidance Patrol operation, until Saturday, September 16, 2023, which marks the anniversary of her passing.
On Thursday, September 14, Aida Younesi, the sister of Ali Younesi, wrote on the social network platform “X” (Twitter): “My brother Ali Younesi and his friend and comrade Amir Hossein Moradi are on a hunger strike in Evin Prison from today until Saturday, the anniversary of Zhina’s (Mahsa) killing. The “Freedom for Ali and Amir Hossein” page on the social network platform “X” announced that it is in solidarity with Zhina’s uprising from the anniversary of her arrest until her killing, which is the reason for the hunger strike by these two imprisoned students.
According to the news, these two political prisoners are currently deprived of contact with their families.
Regarding the two elite students, Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi:
Ali Younesi is a computer engineering student, and Amir Hossein Moradi is a physics student. These two outstanding students of Sharif University of Technology were arrested by intelligence agents on April 11, 2020. The arrests took place after their homes were searched without any judicial warrants. Their arrests were accompanied by beating and physical violence.
During the raid by 12 members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Ali Younesi’s house, he was subjected to brutal beatings that resulted in severe injury to his forehead.
These two elite students were later transferred to solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin Prison. Finally, on June 26, 2022, after 808 days of solitary confinement in closed-door wards in Evin Prison, the two elite students were moved to the general ward, after being handed down 16 years of prison time.
Amir Hossein Moradi is the silver medalist of the National Astronomy Olympiad in 2017, and Ali Younesi is the silver medalist of the National Astronomy Olympiad in 2016 and the gold medalist of the National Astronomy Olympiad in 2017. Additionally, Ali Younesi achieved the gold medal in the 12th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics held in China.
On November 22, 2021, Amnesty International issued an open letter addressed to the Iranian Judiciary, warning against the imminent execution of the two elite students, Ali Younesi and Amir Hossein Moradi, and demanding their immediate release.
Furthermore, Ali Younesi’s father, Mir Yousef Younesi, is currently imprisoned in Evin Prison. He was arrested during nationwide protests, and despite the passage of 7 months, his legal status remains uncertain.
