During and after her arrest, political prisoner Zeinab Jalalian suffered severe physical torture, which caused vision impairment. Since then, she has developed visual disorders, asthma, kidney, and gastrointestinal problems, and for years she has suffered due to the lack of medical care from prison authorities.
On Saturday, December 14, political prisoner Zeinab Jalalian was denied medical treatment upon the orders of Yazd Prison authorities. Additionally, since September 22, she has also been barred from family visits by the same prison officials. Jalalian, who was exiled to Yazd Prison four years ago, has not been able to see her family since her transfer.
Zeinab Jalalian also suffers from severe pain on her right side. During a CT scan at a hospital, prison guards refused to remove her handcuffs and leg shackles, forcing her to undergo the procedure in restraints.
Jalalian’s physical condition has reportedly worsened in recent months due to the severe pain in her right side. Yazd Prison authorities have denied her access to necessary medical care.
Return to the Ward Without a Specialist Examination
In late June, Zeinab Jalalian was transferred to the prison clinic due to severe pain in her right side but was returned to her ward without being examined by a specialist.
Currently, due to the lack of medical attention, she has developed patches and skin lesions on parts of her face, shoulders, and chest. She has requested a transfer to a hospital outside the prison for sonography and tests, but this request has so far been ignored.
Medical Care Contingent on Writing a Repentance Letter
In June, a team of interrogators and Ministry of Intelligence officials met with Jalalian twice in the office of Yazd Central Prison, demanding that she write a repentance letter to receive medical treatment. Jalalian rejected this request, stating that medical treatment and conditional release for health care are her legitimate rights. In November 2023, Ministry of Intelligence agents again threatened her, saying she would be denied all basic rights, including access to medical care, until she expressed remorse. She firmly rejected this action, describing it as a form of torture.
About Political Prisoner Zeinab Jalalian
Political prisoner Zeinab Jalalian was born in 1982 in Iran’s West Azerbaijan Province. On March 10, 2008, she was violently arrested at gunpoint by security forces on the Kermanshah–Sanandaj road. She was subsequently transferred to the Kermanshah Intelligence Detention Center, where she endured severe physical and psychological torture. She was later moved to Sanandaj Prison.
In 2009, Zeinab Jalalian was sentenced to death on charges of “enmity against God” for alleged collaboration with the Kurdish opposition group PJAK. Her trial took place without a defense attorney and lasted only a few minutes. In 2011, her sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.
After being transferred multiple times between prisons, she is now incarcerated in Yazd Prison. Despite 17 years of imprisonment, she has not been granted a single day of medical leave.
Denial of Medical Care Constitutes Torture and Human Rights Violations
The deliberate denial of access to medical care for prisoners can be considered an act of torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
