A detained pregnant Kurdish woman named Saada Khedirzadeh, who is in the last month of her pregnancy, continues to be held in the harsh and unsanitary conditions of the women’s ward of Orumiyeh prison, in West Azerbaijan province.
Khedirzadeh, who was temporarily detained eight months ago, is denied specialised medical care.
A team of doctors suggested that she should be sent to the hospital immediately after examining her twice in the past few days.
She went on a hunger strike for 11 days this month to protest against the continuation of her uncertain situation in prison.
She had ended her hunger strike due to the promise of the prison authorities to release her on bail, but so far, for unknown reasons, the Mahabad court has refused her temporary release.
The pregnant woman suffers from kidney, heart, and lumbar disc diseases at the same time and has been deprived of specialised medical care during this period.
Security forces arrested Khedirzadeh in Piranshahr, West Azerbaijan province, on 14 October 2021. She was transferred to a security detention centre in Orumiyeh.
After 12 days of interrogation, she was transferred to Orumiyeh Central Prison and is currently being held in the women’s ward of the prison.
Amnesty International issued a statement last month stating that Khedirzadeh had not been allowed access to a lawyer since her arrest.
Amnesty said: “Her detention is contrary to the standards of a fair trial and is considered arbitrary under international law because she has been detained for a long time without knowing the reasons for her detention and has been denied access to a lawyer.”
The women’s ward of Orumiyeh Central Prison consists of four separate rooms with 36 beds. At least 40 prisoners are currently being held in each room.
Due to the recently imposed restrictions, female prisoners are kept in these rooms for about 22 hours a day, which have a small area and do not have air conditioning.
