Khaled Pirzadeh’s Suicide Attempt in Evin Prison in Protest Against the Denial of Medical Care

Khaled Pirzadeh, a political prisoner suffering from numerous illnesses and physical ailments, remains detained in Tehran’s Evin Prison. On Saturday, in a message warning about his lack of access to medication and the worsening of his health, he stated that if “anything happens” to him, the head of Iran’s Prisons Organization will be held responsible.

In a post shared on his Instagram account, Pirzadeh directly addressed Heshmatollah Hayat al-Ghaib, the Director-General of the Prisons Organization, stating: “For weeks, my back pain and sciatica have immobilized me, making it extremely difficult to walk. My epilepsy medication, Depakine 500, has run out. Despite repeated requests, I have received no response. My asthma inhaler has also run out, and it hasn’t been provided either.”

In an audio recording released during a phone call from Evin Prison, Pirzadeh revealed that due to the negligence of certain individuals and the failure to supply his essential medications, he suffered a seizure in his sleep a few days ago and bit his tongue. He criticized Hayat al-Ghaib’s inspections of the prisons as ineffective and added: “Your behavior and that of your colleagues contradict the image you portray. From this moment onward, if anything happens to me, I and my family hold you personally responsible.”

Khaled (Koushan) Pirzadeh, a freedom advocate with no criminal record, was last arrested in September 2023 by agents of the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of Intelligence in Ahvaz. On October 15, 2023, he was transferred to Ward 209 of Tehran’s Evin Prison, controlled by the Ministry of Intelligence. In January, Branch 26 of Tehran’s Revolutionary Court, presided over by Iman Afshari, sentenced him to five years and eight months in prison.

A former Iranian bodybuilding champion, Pirzadeh was first arrested in June 2019 by government forces. In February 2020, he was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of “assembly and collusion” and “insulting the leader.” During his incarceration, he developed multiple health issues, losing mobility and even control over bodily functions.

Although he was released in February 2023, Pirzadeh was rearrested in September of the same year while attempting to travel to Turkey and has been imprisoned ever since.
In a message ahead of Nowruz 2023, Pirzadeh, along with several other political activists in Iran, described the “current deplorable state” of Iranians as the result of the “ideas, methods, and goals” that emerged after the 1979 Revolution and the derailment of constitutionalism during the “battle between constitutionalists and proponents of divine rule.”