7 Political Defendants Begin Hunger Strike in Protest of Prolonged Detention

Seven political defendants held in Sheiban Prison, Ahvaz—Ramin Mohammadi, Farshid Kazemi, Maziar Nekooie, Ruhollah Khosravi, Reza Karimnejad, Ashkan Mohammadi, and Hooman Almasi—have gone on hunger strike as of Saturday, October 19. The strike is in protest of their indefinite detention, which has lasted for over a year without trial. Following their action, all seven were transferred to solitary confinement.

A source close to one of the families confirmed to HRANA that the defendants initiated the hunger strike due to “their continued detention and the lack of progress in their judicial cases.” After launching the strike, they were moved to solitary confinement.

These detainees have been held in Sheiban Prison for more than 14 months without any court hearings to address their cases.

Hooman Almasi was arrested in April 2023, while Ashkan Mohammadi, Ramin Mohammadi, and Farshid Kazemi, all residents of Ahvaz, along with Reza Karimnejad and Maziar Nekooie, residents of Isfahan, were arrested in August 2023 by security forces in Izeh. Ruhollah Khosravi, born in 1989, is married and the father of two children. He was detained by security forces in Izeh on August 23, 2023.

After completing interrogations at The Ministry of Intelligence’s detention facility in Ahvaz, the detainees were transferred to Sheiban Prison.

Their cases are under review by a branch of the Izeh Prosecutor’s Office on charges related to national security. However, as of the time of this report, no specific details regarding the charges against them have been disclosed.