Jailed Iranian Activist Sepehri Needs Urgent Heart Surgery

September 28, 2023

2 min read

Mohammad Hossein Sepehri explained that his sister underwent three surgeries in the past two years, with the most recent being performed while she was in prison

Prominent Iranian political prisoner Fatemeh Sepehri urgently needs to undergo an open valve surgery, her brother said, after she reportedly suffered a heart attack while in prison.

Mohammad Hossein Sepehri, who is a political activist, recorded a video message in front of Qaim Hospital in the northeastern city of Mashhad, where he said his sister was transferred on the evening of September 27 as her health condition worsened.

The next day, she underwent an angiography procedure which revealed a blockage in a blood vessel in the heart.

Mohammad Hossein Sepehri explained that his sister underwent three surgeries in the past two years, with the most recent being performed while she was in prison.

Despite her doctor's insistence on continuing her treatment outside Vakil Abad Prison, the authorities not only refused to grant her medical leave but "also subjected her to various forms of torture," he said.

The authorities denied his sister occupational and physical therapy treatment, and even a basic MRI, he said, adding that the windows in her cell have been completely obstructed, making it impossible for the inmate to distinguish between day and night.

As a result of such harsh treatment, Sepehri developed heart disease, according to her brother.

According to some reports, the activist suffered a heart attack on the morning of September 27.

Despite her deteriorating condition, officials of the Ministry of Intelligence officials and the judge on duty refused to immediately transfer her to the hospital.

The activist was arrested in Mashhad on September 12, 2022, and was sentenced in February this year to a total of 18 years in prison on charges including “propaganda against the regime,” “cooperating with hostile countries” and “insulting” Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his predecessor, Ruhollah Khomeini.

She is one of the 14 signatories of a 2019 statement calling for Khamenei’s resignation, the abolition of the Islamic Republic and the establishment of a secular government.