Human rights watchdog Hengaw says Saman Darvishi, a Kurdish prisoner held at Iran’s Evin prison, has died with the cause of death attributed to assault and torture by Iranian security forces.
Darvishi's death, which Hengaw said occurred on May 9, follows a year of reports that he suffered severe beatings and torture while incarcerated for theft and allegedly injuring a police officer during his arrest. The group also noted that Darvishi had previously fallen into a coma after being beaten by guards.
Hengaw did not reveal the source of the report it received on Darvishi's death.
Darvishi was arrested on theft charges last year and was serving time at Fashafuyeh prison. He also served a three-year stint at the Central Karaj prison on similar charges.
Hengaw's report highlights widespread concerns over the treatment of prisoners in Iranian prisons. Deaths allegedly resulting from beatings and torture are not uncommon, but official authorities often dismiss the accounts and attribute the deaths to other causes.
International human rights organization Amnesty International has consistently spotlighted the issue of prisoner deaths in Iran, often pointing to the lack of government accountability and oversight.
Recent data from Hengaw shows that at least 16 prisoners, including 11 Kurdish inmates, have died over the past five months from suspected beatings and torture.
Hana, another human rights organization, reported the May 10 arrest of Fatemeh Moqaddami. the mother of Adris Faqihi, a member of the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK).
She was detained while staging a protest against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence agency in Urmia over her son, who reportedly vanished following a clash between the PJAK and the IRGC in Bukan in July 2022. His arrest by government forces was confirmed several months later.
The PJAK, an outlawed group seeking self-governance for Iran's Kurds and with known links to Turkey's militant Kurdistan Workers Party, operates in the northern Iraqi border area alongside other armed Kurdish groups.