Nejat Anwar Hamidi, a 68-year-old retired teacher, has been imprisoned in Sepidar Prison in Ahvaz since March 2019 on charges of supporting an opposition group.
During her over five years in prison, Hamidi has been deprived of adequate medical treatment despite suffering from multiple health conditions, according to the Coordinating Council of Cultural Organizations of Iran.
The council states that Hamidi, who is serving a 15-year sentence, has not had a single day of medical leave from the prison.
She suffers from thyroid dysfunction, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, chronic headaches, and cataracts in both eyes that are bleeding due to lack of care.
The council considers the "denial of medical services" to inmates like Hamidi as "a form of systematic torture to harass prisoners" by Iranian authorities as a means of intimidation.
Hamidi's family has repeatedly requested she be transferred to a hospital for urgently needed heart surgery recommended by doctors, but prison officials have refused.
Besides severe heart disease, the elderly inmate also suffers from arthritis, thyroid issues, and eye problems that have been inadequately treated during her incarceration.
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