HRANA News Agency – Afshin Sohrabzadeh was urgently transferred to a hospital outside of prison.
According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency in Iran (HRANA), Afshin Sohrabzadeh, exiled political prisoner in Minab prison who suffers from cancer was urgently transferred to a hospital outside prison on May 31st.
Afshin Sohrabzadeh’s cancer has been progressing recently so that he is vomiting blood most of the time.
There is no doctor in the prison of Minab since 5 months ago.
According to the documents which has been provided for HRANA, the prison authorities have confirmed Afshin Sohrabzadeh’s “colon cancer”. According to these documents the warden of Minab prison has clearly mentioned that at least once Afshin has survived from the death because of his disease. The officials have stressed the need for immediate transfer to a medical center outside of prison, and also has requested him to be held in a bigger and more equipped prison for the rest of his sentence.
Mr. Sohrabzadeh who had sewn his lips to go on hunger strike to protest against the prevention of sending him on medical leave on 11th April, now is suffering from respiratory problems and internal bleeding, and by considering the improvement in his disease and lack of medical care, he is getting close to death day by day.
HRANA had already reported that Afshin Sohrabzadeh was transferred to the prison’s clinic and the doctor issued a letter for his transfer to a hospital, but the security authorities of Minab prison ignored it, and this caused the protest by the prisoners and even the warden.
This prisoner’s weight has decreased to 40 kg and his condition is getting worse and serious day by day, but despite the doctors’ advice, judicial authorities, Minab prosecutor and prison authorities of this city, prevent him from being transferred to a hospital outside the Hormozgan province.
Need to be mentioned, Amnesty international issued a statement recently and demanded consideration about the condition of Afshin Sohrabzadeh, ill political prisoner who has been exiled to Minab, and is suffering from digestion and breathing problems.
HRANA had reported earlier that despite his family’s follow-up after the early summer last year and paying 40 million IRR, the prisoner who had been transferred to Evin prison for medical treatment, after a few months without any proper treatment was returned to Minab prison due to high cost of the treatment (about 700 million IRR) and the inability of his family in paying this amount. Returning the prisoner to the former place cost his family 10 million and 200 thousand IRR.
According to the close relatives of this prisoner, Mr. Sohrabzadeh has been beaten during the interrogations by the intelligence officers of Kamyaran which led to the rupture of the hernia and a broken nose and problems of the bladder area, so that he was admitted in two ten-day periods in Sanandaj hospital.
Afshin Sohrabzadeh underwent an intestinal surgery last year which was unsuccessful and led to internal bleeding.
Last year his family offered a deposit of 2 billion IRR paying for the bail to send him to leave which met the disagreement of Minab prison. They also tried to request a leave for Afshin Sohrabzadeh again this year by putting off a deed, which faced again the rejection of authorities in Minab prison.
It should be noted despite the high cost of treatment and medication and the inability of family to afford it, the prisoner because of confiscation of his identification documents at the time of arrest, is deprived of having the health insurance.
Afshin Sohrabzadeh is born in 1990. In June 8, 2009, he was arrested by the intelligence authorities of Kamyaran near the dam of Gavoshan in the road on a coach on charges of fleeing the country to join one of the Kurdish parties.
It should be noted Sohrabzadeh was transferred to Sanandaj Central Prison after the interrogations at the Intelligence Office of Kamyaran, and then in March 2011, was banished from “Sanandaj Central Prison” to “Minab prison”.
Afshin Sohrabzadeh was charged with waging war against God through membership in opposition parties in a 5-minute-long court in Branch 2 of Sanandaj court by Judge Tayari and was sentenced to 25 years in prison and exile to Minab prison. His sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court.