Iranian Political Prisoner in Evin Prison Urges Action to Protect Prisoners As War Escalates

Legal Scholar Asks for Emergency Furloughs and Releases for Trapped Prisoners

June 18, 2025 — From Tehran’s Evin Prison, woman political prisoner and international law scholar Mahvash (Sayeh) Seydal has issued an urgent open letter to international human rights bodies, calling for immediate legal and humanitarian measures to protect the lives and safety of political prisoners who are trapped in or near areas under bombardment in Iran.

In the midst of escalating wartime conditions in Iran, Seydal warns that the government’s failure to provide medical care and apply available legal leniencies—such as emergency furloughs and conditional release—has placed vulnerable detainees, especially women and those with health conditions, at grave risk. 

She cites Iran’s obligations under both Iranian law and international treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the UN Convention Against Torture and Cruel of Inhuman Treatment of Punishment, and urges urgent international pressure to compel Iranian authorities to act.

Seydal’s letter is both a plea and a warning: inaction could result in irreparable human, legal, and political consequences.

The danger to prisoners as the war between Iran and Israel escalates is direct and severe. In a June 16 statement, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) warned that Israel’s evacuation order targeting District 3 in northeastern Tehran—a densely populated area home to over 300,000 people—poses an imminent threat to those held in the nearby Evin Prison.

“Evin Prison, which lies on the edge of District 3, holds numerous political prisoners who have no means of evacuation,” the statement said. “These individuals are trapped, and we are gravely concerned for their safety. Protecting their lives is paramount.“

CHRI called on all parties to fully comply with international humanitarian law and take immediate steps to safeguard civilians, including those in custody. CHRI also called for an immediate ceasefire to open a pathway to diplomacy and allow the parties to the conflict to come to the table and pursue a negotiated solution to the war. 

Read her letter below.

Open Letter from Saye Saidal from Evin Prison to the Authorities of the Islamic Republic

Subject: Urgent Request for the Application of Legal Leniencies for Political Prisoners Amid Wartime Emergency and in Accordance with International Obligations

Greetings,

I, Mahvash (Sayeh) Seydal, as a political prisoner held in Evin Prison, write with deep concern and grave anxiety regarding the critical and emergency situation resulting from the war. I respectfully emphasize the urgent need for immediate legal and humanitarian measures to protect the lives and dignity of political prisoners.

The war that has engulfed our country directly threatens the health and safety of all segments of society, including political prisoners—especially those who are not in full health and those who, due to prison conditions, including medical and sanitary limitations, face heightened vulnerability.

In such a critical situation, any delay or disregard in implementing legal leniencies is not only a blatant violation of fundamental human rights but may also lead to serious and irreparable legal and political consequences.

1. Domestic Legal Grounds:

The Islamic Penal Code (enacted in 2013) explicitly provides in Articles 46, 52, and 58 for alternatives to imprisonment, suspension of sentence execution, and conditional release. In emergency situations such as wartime, these provisions must be implemented immediately and without delay.

The Executive Bylaw of the Prisons Organization also outlines, in Articles 213, 54, and 55, emergency furlough, open prison, prison labor, and electronic monitoring as mechanisms to reduce punitive pressure and to ensure the human dignity of prisoners.

2. International Obligations:

The Islamic Republic of Iran, as a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention Against Torture (CAT), is obligated to uphold humane treatment, dignity, and the health of prisoners. Article 10 of the ICCPR and the core principles of these conventions are binding and unconditional.

Failure to fulfill these obligations constitutes not only a violation of human rights but may also subject the Islamic Republic of Iran to international condemnation and increased legal pressure.

3. The Urgency and Warning:

The experience of previous emergencies—such as during the COVID-19 pandemic—applies now as well. Any delay or failure to implement legal leniencies for political prisoners increases the risk of death, illness, and grave human rights violations, potentially leading to large-scale legal and humanitarian disasters.

4. Demands:

• Immediate, enforceable, and transparent directives to grant political prisoners all available legal leniencies, including emergency furlough, conditional release, sentence suspension, open prison, prison labor, and electronic monitoring;
• Establishment of robust, coordinated, and transparent oversight mechanisms to ensure full and effective implementation of these directives;
• A clear declaration of the judiciary’s commitment to upholding the human rights and dignity of political prisoners in this emergency context.

In conclusion, as a political prisoner detained in Evin, I reiterate that ignoring these requests is not merely a violation of civil and human rights—it risks causing serious and irreparable legal and political harm.

I hope our voices are heard and that swift and humane action is taken in this regard.

With respect,
Mahvash (Sayeh) Seydal
Evin Prison – June 2025