Damage caused by the fire at Evin prison, seen in an image obtained from the Iranian news agency IRNA on October 16, 2022
Eight Iranian inmates were killed in a fire that raged through Tehran’s Evin prison, the judiciary said Monday, doubling the official toll from the blaze that further stoked tensions after a month of protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini.
Authorities in the Islamic republic have blamed the fire late Saturday on “riots and clashes” among prisoners, but human rights groups said they doubted the official version of events and feared the real toll could be even higher.
Gunshots and explosions were heard during the dramatic blaze from inside the complex, according to social media footage, and state media later broadcast images of parts of the prison gutted by the flames.
Judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said Monday that the fire was “a crime committed by a few elements linked to the enemy”.
“The number of those killed in Evin Prison is probably higher than the official count,” it added.
IHR said many prisoners had been transferred to Gohardasht prison in Karaj west of Tehran in the aftermath of the fire.
The fire came after four weeks of protests over the death of 22-year-old Amini, following her arrest for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code for women.
Read the article in the Herald Sun (AFP).