Recent reports indicate a new wave of COVID-19 outbreak inside notorious Sepidar Prison in Ahvaz, capital of Iran Khuzestan province.
Prison authorities have tried to cover up the scale of the outbreak and left sick prisoners in women’s ward of the prison without medical care.
Despite the new wave of outbreaks, prisoners are not tested for the virus. They are detained in a limited space without sufficient hygienic products.
The coronavirus has spread at least twice in Sepidar Prison of Ahvaz since two years ago.
In May 2020, some 50 female inmates contracted the virus.
They included political prisoner Nejat Anvar Hamidi, who has been detained since March 2019 to serve her 15-year sentence.
She suffers from Thyroid malfunction, high blood pressure, and blood lipid. Ms. Anvar Hamidi’s vision is also at risk. She is being detained among ordinary prisoners in violation of the principle of separation of crimes.
Iran’s Judiciary and the State Prisons Organization are ultimately responsible for the health and safety of the prisoners. However, judicial authorities have been unlawfully endangering the lives of prisoners by failing to provide adequate medical services and maintain sanitary conditions.
Amidst overcrowded, unsanitary and cramped conditions, and lack of access to health care, many prisoners have been affected by the virus, and deaths have been reported in various prisons across the country.
