Imprisoned Kurdish rapper Saman Yasin, who was arrested by Iranian security forces during anti-government protests in Tehran last September, has described in a new audio file the physical and psychological torture he has endured, including staged executions and the infliction of a nose injury, as a result of intense interrogation by security officers aimed at extracting forced “confessions”.
The message was recorded before Yasin was transferred to Evin Prison, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has learned.
In his audio message, Yasin revealed that the authorities had threatened him by harassing his family, saying, “We have your family. We have your brother. They are all here.”
Adding that he had been denied communication and visits from his family, the artist said: “I had no information. They said if you don’t not want your family to be tortured, write these down and you will be released. I had no choice but to comply so that they would not touch my family.”
Yasin also said that he was once taken to a “staged execution” while he was in the quarantine ward of the Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj.
The rapper also spoke of the physical torture he suffered in detention, saying that security interrogators broke his nose, which still “bleeds every few nights”. He has been denied access to medical care in an outside hospital because of the judge’s objections.
In his audio message, the prisoner also recounted his recent transfer to Amin Abad Psychiatric Hospital in Rey, Tehran Province: “Upon arrival at Amin Abad Hospital, I was forcibly tied to the hospital bed by a group of prison guards and staff. My hands were handcuffed and my legs were shackled. An injection I was given left me unconscious for 24 hours”.
On 22 July, on the orders of Judge Salavati, Yasin was transferred from Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj to Amin Abad Psychiatric Hospital. After a few days of forced hospitalisation, he was returned to prison.
His involuntary hospitalisation at Amin Abad Psychiatric Hospital followed the circulation of an earlier audio message on social media platforms detailing his recent condition.
On 1 August, Yasin and eight other political prisoners – Saeid Masouri, Afshin Baymani, Motalleb Ahmadian, Hamzeh Savari, Loghman Aminpour, Mohammad Shafei, Hossein Gachlou, and Masoud Kazeminezhad – were transferred from Rajai Shahr Prison to Ward 8 of Evin Prison in Tehran.
Yasin informed his family of the transfer in a brief phone call a few days later.
A Persian version of the audio has been provided to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) for distribution:
Background
Yasin, who comes from Kermanshah, western Iran, was arrested after he was beaten by security forces during the anti-government protests in Tehran on 30 September 2022.
After his arrest, Yasin was first taken to the Public Prosecutor’s Security Office in Evin Prison and then transferred to the Greater Tehran Central Penitentiary.
Since his arrest, he has been moved several times between Evin and Rajai Shahr prisons.
Eventually, he was returned to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj on 27 February after spending a month in Ward 209 of Evin Prison.
On 29 October 2022, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s state news agencies reported that a court hearing was held for several arrested protesters, including Saman Yasin.
On the same day, a video of the singer’s forced “confessions” was released by state media.
The state-run outlets said that the Kurdish artist had been charged with “enmity against God” (moharebeh), which carries the death penalty in Iran, and “assembly and collusion with the intention of acting against the security of the country”.
Yasin’s death sentence verdict was issued by Branch 28 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Tehran, presided over by Judge Amouzad.
After Yasin’s death sentence was issued, he and two other prisoners on death row, Mohsen Shekari and Mohammad Boroughani, were transferred to Rajai Shahr Prison in Karaj on 29 November 2022.
Mohsen Shekari was executed on 8 December 2022 after 75 days in detention.
In late December 2022, the Iranian Supreme Court overturned Yasin’s death sentence due to “lack of investigation” and referred it to the same court for reinvestigation and retrial.
The document sent to Yasin in prison stated that the charges brought against him were “assembly and collusion with the intention of committing a crime against the security of the country”, and “disturbing the public order and peace”.
Since his arrest, Yasin has been interrogated several times and subjected to physical and mental torture, including solitary confinement, being kept in a room known as “the morgue”, severe beating, sticking a pen in his left nostril, being thrown down from stairs, and being forced to make “confessions” under duress.
He has also gone on hunger strike several times to protest against his harsh conditions in prison and the state of uncertainty of his case.
On 20 December 2022, Yasin attempted suicide by swallowing pills due to the harsh detention conditions in Hall 31 of Ward 10 of Rajai Shahr Prison. He received the initial treatment at the prison hospital and was then moved to the political prisoners’ ward.
