One resident who lives in the county, where the prison houses are located, said she could see several buildings in the prison compound on fire and she heard screams from inside. Speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, she said she heard gunfire starting at 10 a.m. Saturday. By 9 p.m., she said, she could hear the sound of automatic gunfire, followed by loud explosions.
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The woman said the windows of many nearby houses had been shattered by the explosions and that locals could be heard shouting “die for the dictator.”
In the early hours of Sunday morning, and after the fire was reported to have been extinguished, residents continued to report hearing additional explosions.
Internet and phone communications have been severely disrupted in Iran since anti-government protests broke out last month. On Saturday, the judiciary ordered telecommunications companies to ban text messaging services, further restricting Iranians’ ability to communicate.
Saturday’s fire, the first at the prison in recent memory, came amid nationwide protests that began in September after Mahsa Amini, 22, died while being held by police. incarceration ethics. Amini was charged with wearing a headscarf improperly, violating the law in the Islamic Republic.
Iranians, getting ready after more than a month of protests, said the prison fire only added to their anxiety. The families of those arrested said they feared not only for the safety of their loved ones, but also for themselves.
Human rights organizations and activists have also expressed concern about the safety of prisoners.
“The prisoners, including countless political prisoners, were completely defenseless inside that prison,” Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the Center for Human Rights in Iran, said in a statement. .
