Detained former Iranian and world wrestling champion Saman Pashaei is currently undergoing coercive interrogations for forced “confessions” at the Ministry of Intelligence detention centre in Sananda, Kurdistan Province.
An informed source who spoke to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) and said that after 45 days in detention, Pashaei was finally granted a visit by his family.
At least two security officers were present at the meeting and told Pashaei’s family that his release was conditional on his “confession”.
Sardar Pashaei, a vocal political dissident of the Iranian government, former mentor of the Iranian national wrestling team and brother of Saman Pashaei, took to the X social media platform on 13 August to say that his family was “horrified” by his brother’s physical condition during the meeting.
He held the Iranian government responsible for any harm his brother might suffer in detention.
The source who spoke to KHRN stressed that Saman Pashaei had been subjected to harsh interrogation in recent weeks.
Following the meeting, Pashaei’s family described his condition as “alarmingly frail” and likened him to a “mere skeleton”.
More than 50 days after his arrest, Pashaei has not been formally charged and has been denied access to legal representation.
Security forces arrested Pashaei without a court order at the entrance to Saqqez, Kurdistan Province, on 2 July.
Security forces beat Pashaei during his detention, raided his home and confiscated his personal belongings, sources told KHRN.
Pashaei, who is also a university professor and sports coach, was summoned and interrogated by the Ministry of Intelligence in Sanandaj in mid-June.
The athlete’s arrest coincided with a wave of arrests, including in the town of Saqqez, the birthplace of Jina Mahsa Amini, as the anniversary of the 2022 protests approaches.
Pashaei, who has a doctorate in physiology and is a professor of sports nutrition and physiology at Azad University in Saqqez, is a member of the American National Academy of Sports Medicine and a former Greco-Roman wrestling world champion.
Earlier, in response to Pashaei’s arrest, the International Olympic Committee said it was “closely monitoring the situation and reserves the right to take any action against the Islamic Republic until the Olympic Games”.
