Civil activist Sepideh Gholian has published an account describing the worsening treatment of detainees held at Sepidar Prison in Ahwaz since December 2025. According to her report, many detainees have been confined in the prison’s prayer hall for months and have been deprived of fundamental rights, including family visits, access to outdoor exercise, adequate heating and cooling facilities, and proper sanitation.
Gholian further reported that information received from inside the prison indicates that several detainees bore severe signs of physical abuse. She also stated that a number of detainees were transferred to the prison through procedures that departed from established legal protocols. In addition, because Ahwaz lacks a juvenile correctional facility for girls under the age of 18, female children and adolescents are reportedly being held alongside adult prisoners, contrary to internationally recognized standards requiring the separation of detainees by age and legal status.
The report also highlights serious shortages of drinking water and adequate food within the prison. According to Gholian, newly arrested individuals and political prisoners are being held in dark cells without natural light and with severely restricted access to drinking water, sanitary facilities, and showers.
Gholian described these conditions and the extensive deprivation imposed on detainees at Sepidar Prison as constituting a clear pattern of systematic control, abuse, and torture.
