Vakil Abad Prison, Mashhad
Part One
1. Introduction: Vakil Abad Prison – A Center for Repression and Secret Executions
Vakil Abad Central Prison in Mashhad is one of the most significant centers of repression and human rights violations under the regime’s repressive policies. In recent decades, it has become known as a major site for mass executions. Vakil Abad Prison not only holds ordinary criminals but also serves as a key detention and torture center for political and ideological opponents. The inhumane conditions, particularly in the women’s ward and among political and Sunni prisoners, have drawn the attention of international human rights organizations.
2. History: From a Local Prison to a Center for Systematic Repression
Vakil Abad Prison was established during the Pahlavi era and was originally built on Arg Street in Mashhad. However, after the 1979 revolution, it underwent major structural changes and was relocated to the Vakil Abad area.
Although the prison’s official capacity is 2,500 inmates, it currently holds more than 10,000 prisoners, forcing many to sleep on the floor due to overcrowding.
3. “The Daily Slow Death of Prisoners: Torture, Humiliation, Hunger, and Disease”
- Severe overcrowding and inhumane living conditions, with many prisoners sleeping on the floor.
- Dreadful sanitary conditions; widespread skin and gastrointestinal diseases due to poor-quality food and infestations of pests such as cockroaches and lice.
- Psychological torture leads inmates to the brink of insanity.
- Deprivation of the most basic human rights during interrogations.
4. The Silent Cycle of Death: Illegal, Secret, and Mass Executions
- This prison is one of the primary locations for secret executions in Iran.
- Death row inmates are transferred to special cells the night before execution and are secretly executed before sunrise. These executions take place in groups of 15 to 70 prisoners at a time.
- Prison authorities carry out executions in silence, without informing the inmates’ families or even their lawyers.
- Between July 2009 and April 2010, nearly 250 people were executed in Vakil Abad Prison.
- In August 2010, mass executions were conducted four times per week, with each session involving 60 to 70 prisoners.
5. The Darkest Sections of the Prison: From Torture Quarantine to Execution Wards
Quarantine and Consultation Wards – Psychological Pressure Centers
These sections are officially labeled as “rehabilitation and psychological therapy” units, but they serve as tools for intense psychological pressure under the prison administration’s control.
General Wards – A Network of Corruption, Addiction, and Violence
The internal prison mafia manages moral corruption, drug trade, and the abuse of inmates.
- Wards 1, 4, and 5: These hold prisoners convicted of drug trafficking, where access to drugs is extremely easy due to distribution networks that operate under the prison’s supervision. This has led to widespread addiction and severe violence among inmates.
- Ward 5 is divided into four sections (101, 102, 103, and 104), each designated for different types of prisoners, ranging from those on death row to those convicted of theft and drug-related offenses.
- Ward 101: A maximum-security unit where political prisoners and death row inmates are held under constant surveillance. This section is completely sealed off with double-layered iron doors, making it invisible from the outside, and movement within is strictly controlled.
- Ward 102: Holds inmates convicted of murder and retribution sentences (Qisas).
- Ward 103: Houses young prisoners charged with ordinary crimes such as theft and drug dealing.
- Ward 104: Holds prisoners over 25 years old convicted of theft and drug offenses.
Ward 5 Disciplinary Section – A Secret Dungeon
This is the most hidden and mysterious section of Vakil Abad Prison. During international inspections, the entrance is concealed with blankets and falsely presented as a storage area. Very little information is available about the conditions inside, but unspeakable atrocities are reported to take place there.
The Political Prisoners’ Ward: Silencing the Voices of Freedom
- Political prisoners are held in Ward 6-1 and other sections of the prison under inhumane conditions.
- This unit is classified as a high-security ward where hardened criminals, armed robbers, and dozens of political and ideological prisoners, particularly Sunni prisoners, are detained.
- Inmates sentenced to death are transferred to this ward the night before their execution and are hanged before dawn.
- Entrance to this ward is designed to conceal its purpose, keeping political prisoners out of sight. Every room is under constant surveillance with two security cameras. Even the bathrooms and toilets have cameras installed at both ends to always monitor prisoners.
- In General Ward 5, three activists—Hashem Khastar (teacher), Dr. Kamal Jafari, and Mohammad Hossein Sepehri, who signed a statement against Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei—are being held in a cramped, 3m x 3m space. Their bathroom and shower are inside this tiny area, making the conditions extremely oppressive and suffocating. This environment is more like a filthy latrine than a prison cell.
Ward 6: Forced Labor and Prisoner Exploitation
This ward is designated for prison labor, where inmates are forced into work for minimal wages, essentially exploiting them for free labor.
6. Vakil Abad Prison on the Blacklist of Human Rights Organizations
On September 25, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned two Iranian judges and three prisons, including Vakil Abad Prison in Mashhad, for human rights violations, including torture, inhumane treatment, arbitrary detentions, and suppression of peaceful protests.
Families of political prisoners and human rights activists have submitted letters and reports to international organizations, calling for urgent attention and action regarding the conditions of political prisoners in Iran, especially in Vakil Abad Prison. These appeals emphasize the need for international monitoring and pressure on Iranian authorities to improve conditions for inmates.
Documents and letters from prisoners paint a shocking picture of the conditions in Vakil Abad Prison:
- The influence of mafia groups and internal drug trade
- Moral corruption and psychological abuse
- Torture and sexual violence
- Unbearable food and sanitation conditions
In a letter addressed to Javaid Rehman, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, Sadigheh Malekifard (the wife of Hashem Khastar) highlighted her husband’s dire situation in Vakil Abad Prison. Additionally, Hashem Khastar himself wrote an open letter to the Iranian people and the global community, exposing the harsh conditions of political prisoners in Vakil Abad and detailing the restrictions and pressures imposed on them.
