HRANA News Agency – Fatemeh Sepehri, a political prisoner held in Vakilabad Prison, Mashhad, is enduring poor physical and environmental conditions despite needing regular medical care. Due to a heart condition and past surgery, she requires quarterly medical examinations.
According to HRANA, the news agency of Human Rights Activists in Iran, Sepehri’s specialized medical needs remain unmet in prison, contributing to her deteriorating condition.
Her brother, Asghar Sepehri, stated that Fatemeh was examined by a cardiac surgeon on December 25 due to her heart condition. Additionally, three days later, she was seen by an orthopedic specialist for severe pain in both hands. The doctor administered pain-relieving injections and prescribed 10 physical therapy sessions, attributing the pain to psychological stress and the pressures of the prison environment.
Since December 5, Sepehri has only been allowed two hours of daily outdoor time under the supervision of a guard. Her brother emphasized that these harsh conditions are exacerbating her physical and mental health challenges.
Following her heart surgery in October last year, Sepehri has repeatedly requested medical or conditional leave, all of which have been denied by security agencies and the prison’s overseeing judge.
In June of 2024, Sepehri and her brothers, Mohammad-Hossein Sepehri and Hossein Sepehri, were sentenced to a total of 18 years and six months in prison. The charges against her included “assembly and collusion against national security,” “insulting the Supreme Leader,” and “propaganda against the regime,” as well as an additional charge of “supporting a hostile government (Israel).”
Sepehri is currently serving a sentence from a prior case in Vakilabad Prison. She was temporarily released on medical leave on October 16, 2023, but was re-arrested at her home in Mashhad just three days later, and returned to prison.
In February 2023, the Mashhad Criminal Court sentenced her to an additional one year of imprisonment and a fine of 20 million tomans for “spreading falsehoods and disturbing public opinion.” She was also arrested on September 21 of that year at her home and transferred to Vakilabad Prison.
Fatemeh Sepehri is one of the signatories of a letter calling for the resignation of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In the initial trial, Branch 4 of the Mashhad Revolutionary Court sentenced her to five years of imprisonment, later reduced to three years and six months on appeal. In May, 2023, this sentence was conditionally suspended for five years, leading to her temporary release.