The prison authorities have barred death row prisoner Reza Rasaei from receiving phone calls and family visits for the past week, according to Dadban, a group of pro-bono lawyers in Iran defending political prisoners.
“The authorities of Dizel Abad prison in Kermanshah province have cut off Reza Rasaei's contact with his family and have not given any explanation about the reason for these restrictions,” a source close to the case told Dadban.
The group also reported intensified pressure on Rasaei's family, with increased threats of arrest being made against them.
Last year, the death sentence of Rasaei, one of the detainees from the 2022 nationwide protests, was confirmed by the Supreme Court of Iran.
Rasaei, from the marginalized Kurdish and Yarsan minorities, was sentenced to death by a Revolutionary Court on charges related to the killing of Nader Beirami, head of the Revolutionary Guards Intelligence Organization in Sanandaj, during a clash between security and law enforcement forces and protesters.
Various human rights organizations, including Dadban and Hengaw, reported that the authorities attributed Beirami’s murder to Rasaei without providing any evidence, witnesses, or documents.
Amnesty International, also, issued a warning about Rasaei's trial, noting that he was subjected to torture and ill-treatment, including electric shocks and severe beatings, to compel self-incriminating “confessions.”
