HRANA News Agency – Mokhtar Alboshokeh, a political prisoner held in Sheiban Prison in Ahvaz, has described the physical and psychological torture he endured in one of the police detention facilities in Ahvaz in an open letter.

In the letter, he recounts how officers subjected him to verbal sexual harassment and repeatedly struck his abdomen despite being aware of his hernia condition. These violent acts exacerbated his illness, causing severe pain. Alboshokeh, who is serving a life sentence, also reveals that he has been deprived of essential medical treatment, despite medical recommendations. Instead of receiving appropriate care, he has been forced to rely on heavy painkillers and medications to endure the pain caused by his condition and the torture.

Previously, Alboshokeh was removed from prison on orders from the Iranian Cyber Police (FATA) and was subsequently beaten while in one of the police detention centers in Ahvaz. His letter details the worsening of his condition due to the violent acts and the resulting injuries.

Here is the full text of Mokhtar Alboshokeh’s letter:

“When you’ve been in prison for 14 years with a life sentence plus five more years, even a glimpse of the streets, cars in motion, the trees lining the boulevards, or the hurried faces of people seems like embarking on a luxurious tour to see the most beautiful sights in the world. That’s why, on December 6, 2024, when I was called and escorted to a car within the prison grounds, a spark of excitement ignited in me. This feeling lasted only until I left the prison gate with a group of plainclothes agents I didn’t recognize. The person in the front seat turned, punched me hard in the face, and instructed his colleague beside me, ‘Put a blindfold and handcuffs on this scum!’

Holding my aching face, I resisted while the two officers beside me wrenched my hands away, forcing them behind my back to handcuff me. Their aggressive actions caused severe pain as I caught the last fleeting glimpses of the world outside the prison before a blindfold plunged me into complete darkness. At that moment, it struck me: ‘Mokhtar, this isn’t a sightseeing trip. There will be no boulevards, trees, cars, or faces of passersby to marvel at.’ But even then, I didn’t anticipate the extent of torture awaiting me—especially after spending 14 years in prison!

I tried to reassure myself: ‘I’ve already spent 14 years in prison with a life sentence for a crime I didn’t commit. What more could they want from me to justify tormenting me further?’ While I was lost in these thoughts, a powerful punch to my lower abdomen left me doubled over in pain. Reflexively, I said, ‘Please, don’t hit me! I have a severe hernia.’ The officer next to me, seemingly thrilled by this information, sneered and said, ‘Oh, even better!’ He hurled vulgar sexual insults and added, ‘A hernia, huh? I’ll make you forget all about it!’ before landing another brutal punch to the same spot.

During the drive to their detention center, their relentless barrage of obscene insults directed at my mother, sister, and family was so psychologically painful that it almost distracted me from the physical pain of their punches and slaps. After arriving at the facility—later revealed to belong to the Ahvaz Cyber Police (FATA)—I endured severe torture for several days.

I lost track of time but eventually passed out from the repeated punches and kicks, especially to my abdomen. When I regained consciousness, I found myself chained to a hospital bed with handcuffs and leg shackles. A man, presumably a doctor, was pleading with the officers, saying, ‘This man has a severe hernia, and there’s a high risk of rupture. He needs to stay here and undergo immediate surgery.’ Ignoring him as though he were talking to a wall, the plainclothes officers dragged me off the hospital bed after re-blindfolding and handcuffing me, returning me to their torture chamber.

This cycle of torture, vulgar insults aimed at my family, losing consciousness, being taken to the hospital, the doctor’s pleas for urgent treatment, and the officers’ indifference repeated itself. All of this happened while I was on a hunger strike. Eventually, I was returned to Sheiban Prison in Ahvaz. And why did they do all this? Because they found my name in the contact list of a phone belonging to someone who had been arrested. I’ve been in their prison for 14 years!

When I returned to the prison ward, I initially thought I had been gone for over two months. My cellmates reminded me it had only been 12 days—from December 6 to December 18. Now, a month after those events, I feel an irreparable void inside me—not because of the physical torture, but because of the psychological torment of their relentless vulgar insults against my loved ones. It’s a wound that will never heal.”

Background on Mokhtar Alboshokeh

Mokhtar Alboshokeh was arrested by security forces in March 2011 in the city of Khalafabad (also known as Ramshir) in Khuzestan Province. In July 2012, he was sentenced to death by Branch 3 of the Ahvaz Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Seyyed Mohammad Bagher Mousavi, on charges of moharebeh (waging war against God), efsad-e-fel-arz (spreading corruption on earth), propaganda against the Islamic Republic, and actions against national security. His death sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment.