Videos showed smoke rising from the Evin prison in Tehran. (Representative)
Dubai:
Online Iranian videos on Saturday showed smoke rising from Tehran’s Avin prison, which houses political prisoners, as shots and alarms could be heard.
There was no immediate comment from Iranian officials or state media reports on the footage shared on social media.
Activist website 1500tasvir said gunshots could be heard and smoke could be seen from the Evin prison.
A witness contacted by Reuters said: “The prisoners’ families have gathered in front of the main gate of Evin Prison.” “I can see the fire and the smoke. A lot of special forces. There are ambulances here too.”
Gunshots can be heard and smoke can be seen from the Evin prison.#mahasamini#iran revolution#مهسا_امینیpic.twitter.com/ut5Ds0Oup9
— 1500tasvir_en (@1500tasvir_en) 15 October 2022
His lawyer said Siamak Namazi, an Iranian American who had been imprisoned in Iran for nearly seven years on espionage-related charges that Washington called baseless, returned to Avin on Wednesday. Other dual citizens are also held in Avin.
The prison, which houses most of the detainees facing security charges, has long been criticized by Western rights groups and was blacklisted by the US government in 2018 for “serious human rights abuses”.
Human Rights Watch has accused officers in the prison of torture and threatening indefinite imprisonment, as well as lengthy interrogations and denial of medical care to detainees.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)