HRANA – Motaleb Ahmadian, a political prisoner held in Evin Prison, is facing deteriorating health and complications related to cancer in his 16th year of imprisonment. Multiple surgeries and damage to his internal organs have severely limited the possibility of further surgical intervention. Despite the Legal Medicine Organization’s determination that he is medically unfit to remain incarcerated and its repeated emphasis on the necessity of receiving treatment outside prison, the Tehran Prosecutor continues to oppose suspending the enforcement of his sentence or granting him medical furlough.
According to HRANA, Motaleb Ahmadian, a political prisoner held in Evin Prison, is suffering from poor physical health and faces serious obstacles to receiving medical treatment due to cancer and its associated complications.
According to information obtained by HRANA, Ahmadian has undergone several surgeries due to complications arising from a cancerous tumor. During these procedures, his gallbladder was removed, and portions of his liver and intestines were also operated on. The repeated surgeries and resulting damage to his digestive system have made further surgical intervention extremely risky.
During his most recent consultation with specialist physicians and surgeons, Ahmadian was informed, following an assessment of his condition, that further surgery was no longer possible. However, according to information received, his physical condition requires an urgent surgical procedure. The surgery currently needed is not directly related to the original operation to remove the cancerous tumor but has become necessary due to complications resulting from that procedure.
The Legal Medicine Organization has also informed the judge overseeing the prison and the Tehran Prosecutor’s Office on several occasions that, given the deterioration of Ahmadian’s health, it is essential for him to receive treatment for his multiple medical conditions outside prison. Nevertheless, the Tehran Prosecutor has so far refused to approve either the suspension of his sentence or his release on medical furlough. The continuation of these circumstances, particularly in light of the limitations on his access to treatment and his urgent need for medical attention, has heightened concerns about his health and life.
In addition to duodenal cancer, Ahmadian suffers from several other medical conditions, including a diaphragmatic hernia, spinal canal stenosis, and a urinary tract infection. Despite these conditions and the Legal Medicine Organization’s determination that he is medically unfit to endure imprisonment, he remains incarcerated in Evin Prison.
In June 2026, following a worsening of his illness, Ahmadian was transferred to a hospital, where he underwent several surgical procedures. After a period of hospitalization, he was returned to Evin Prison. An informed source had previously told HRANA that delays in transferring the prisoner to medical facilities had caused a tumor initially diagnosed as benign to become malignant, with the disease spreading to his liver and gallbladder.
Previous reports also indicated that at least three scheduled hospital transfers had been canceled and that Ahmadian had been denied adequate access to medication and medical services.
In October, 2025, Motaleb Ahmadian reported worsening pain and deteriorating health in a letter. In part of the letter, he wrote:
“I am writing this while every part of my body is in the most excruciating pain imaginable, or at least I hope this is the worst it can get, because I have never experienced anything more painful in my life. Since my last letter, my physical condition has not only failed to improve but has actually worsened.”
In May 2025, he also launched a hunger strike to protest the Tehran Prosecutor’s refusal to suspend the enforcement of his sentence to allow him to receive medical treatment, as well as the denial of medical care.
In 2018, Branch 1 of the Criminal Court One of Kurdistan Province sentenced Ahmadian to eight years of discretionary imprisonment and payment of half the full blood money (diya) on the charge of “participation in murder.” In connection with the same case, he was also sentenced to one year in prison and ordered to pay 20 million tomans in blood money on the charge of “intentional assault and battery.” Following notification of the verdict while he was held in Sanandaj Prison, he was first transferred to Evin Prison and subsequently to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj. After the closure of Rajai Shahr Prison, he was transferred back to Evin Prison.
Motaleb Ahmadian, approximately 39 years old and a resident of Baneh County, was arrested on October 5, 2010, on the charge of moharebeh (enmity against God) through membership in an opposition group and sentenced to 30 years of imprisonment in exile. He was initially held in Minab Prison before being transferred to Saqqez Prison in 2016. He had also been sentenced in 2008 and 2011 to fines and one year of imprisonment for unauthorized crossings of the country’s borders.
