Activist reveals "horrific" conditions in Iran's prisons

Iranian activist Leila Hosseinzadeh has detailed in a social media post the dire conditions of female prisoners jailed at Adel Abad prison in Shiraz, noting that sedative and anxiety pills are being given to many prisoners.

In a Twitter post on January 15, Hosseinzadeh, who was temporarily released from prison earlier this month, described what was happening at the prison as “horrific” and said that the administration of pills to prisoners was a horrible “crime", Al Arabiya English informs.

In a thread on her personal Twitter account, Hosseinzadeh went on to say that the medical treatment of the prisoners was alarming.

She noted that inmates with medical conditions such as hepatitis were left without any medical attention. In the tweet, Hosseinzadeh recalled asking for medical tests to be carried out to determine whether she suffered from any inflammation but said the prison authorities refused.

Hosseinzadeh, who has been arrested several times over the past years, also spoke about prisoners’ “lack of access” to painkillers.

In addition to the prison’s lack of proper ventilation and being served with contaminated food, Hosseinzadeh described the behaviour of some prison guards as a “total destruction of human dignity.”

She also described an incident where a prisoner went on a hunger strike and her medical situation worsened, prompting the inmates to call the guard for help. Hosseinzaeh said the response was, “Let her die.”