Kurdish Prisoner Dies Due to Medical Neglect by Iranian Prison Authorities

Hengaw: Monday, May 13, 2024

At Ghezel Hesar Prison, Karaj, Kurdish inmate Kianoush Valadbeigi passed away due to inadequate medical attention and delays in his transfer to medical facilities.

According to a report received by the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, Mr. Valadbeigi, 35, from Noriav village in Paveh County, Kermanshah Province, succumbed to his health conditions in a Tehran hospital. Despite battling kidney and heart diseases for several years, he faced obstruction from prison authorities in obtaining the necessary medical leave.

A spokesperson for the Valadbeigi family lamented, "Kianoush Valadbeigi was arrested in Shiraz seven years ago on charges related to drug offenses, receiving an 18-year sentence. Approximately two years prior to his demise, he was relocated from Adel Abad Prison in Shiraz to Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj."

According to data compiled by the Statistics and Documents Center of the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the distressing death of Mr. Valadbeigi marks one of at least 15 fatalities in Iranian correctional facilities during the initial five months of 2024, with eight of these casualties being Kurdish prisoners.