Security Forces Pressure Isfahan Detainees with Abuse and Intimidation

More than three weeks have passed since the re-arrest of Sama Amoushahi, a mountaineer and rock climber from central Isfahan.

Alongside her, several other individuals arrested in Isfahan in July 2023 have been summoned by the 13th branch of the Isfahan Public Prosecutor's Office.

Information obtained by IranWire reveals that the security agents, in the case of at least 17 citizens of Isfahan who were detained in July 2023, across different parts of the city, failed to find any documents or evidence supporting the accusations.

Instead, they relied on confessions and psychological pressure to build cases against these individuals.

The interrogators reportedly used various methods to pressure the detainees, including grouping them to extract confessions against one another, humiliating them, and creating psychological stress by focusing on tattoos some detainees had, investigating sexual orientations, and forcing confessions on camera.

Despite more than three weeks since the summoning and re-arrest of Sama Amoushahi, the charges or reasons for her arrest remain unclear.

The 33-year-old mountaineer suffers from thyroid cancer and is not in good physical condition.

She requires specific medications, raising concerns that the security forces might have put her in particularly harsh conditions.

Since her arrest, there has been no new information about her condition.

Since last year, security agents have been attempting to portray the 17 individuals arrested on two separate occasions in July 2023 as part of an organized group.

A significant portion of their interrogations focused on identifying a leader, and agents pressured detainees to confess that two of the arrested women were the leaders.

The events began on July 11, 2023, when security agents simultaneously arrested 17 individuals in the early hours of the morning in various parts of Isfahan.

These individuals, all ordinary citizens with no history of activity in any group, were arrested under a warrant from the 13th branch of the Isfahan Public Prosecutor's Office.

They were subjected to daily interrogations for over three weeks in various detention centers, including Dowlat Abad and Soroush.

Sixteen days after this group's arrest, two more Isfahan citizens, Maryam Farhang and Puoya Talebian, were detained by intelligence agents.

Maryam Farhang is a carpenter, and Puoya Talebian is a sports rock climber working at heights.

The accusations against these individuals include "participation and collusion in actions against national security," "propaganda against the Islamic Republic," and "insulting the leadership."

During interrogations, security agents threatened some detainees with the added charge of "leadership of the group" if they did not cooperate.

Following the interrogations, the detainees were released on bail. However, just before the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death in September 2023, a film was aired on Isfahan provincial state TV, featuring images seemingly related to the confessions of these detainees.

Despite their release, the individuals have refrained from social media activity and have been summoned and questioned again after 10 months.

Throughout this period, security agents pressured the detainees' families, promising lighter sentences in exchange for not publicizing information about their conditions.

Initially, in 2023, agents classified the detainees by age and gender, exerting pressure on the younger ones to obtain confessions.

According to information obtained by IranWire about the detainees in Isfahan, their interrogations were typically conducted by a man who always wore a mask and instructed them to call him "doctor."

Male detainees reported experiencing severe physical abuse during interrogations, including blows to the head and neck that sometimes caused unconsciousness.

The "doctor" also frequently struck them on the back and threatened them with torture involving electricity and water.

Female detainees were more reticent about the details of their interrogations but highlighted two specific abuses: sexual touching and humiliation related to their tattoos.

Women's interrogations often involved sexual and gender-based humiliations, vulgar language, and derogatory adjectives.

A particular tactic used by the interrogators was probing the detainees about their sexual orientations, attempting to alter the nature of the interrogation and the accusations based on their responses.

In some cases, the interrogator touched the women's breasts, using this as a means to intimidate and control them.

The psychological and mental conditions of the detainees in Isfahan are severely affected, leaving them unable to fully articulate the details of their experiences.

More than three weeks have passed since Sama Amoushahi's re-arrest, and there are growing fears that she might be subjected to similar or even harsher conditions.