Allarm over Manoucher Bakhtiari

Sara Abbasi, the wife of Manouchehr Bakhtiari — father of slain protester Pouya Bakhtiari — has raised alarm over her husband's deteriorating condition in prison and confirmed that he has been on hunger strike for five days.

According to Mrs. Abbasi, Mr. Bakhtiari launched the hunger strike in protest against humiliating treatment by prison guards and the systematic denial of his legal rights. In a monitored phone call, Bakhtiari revealed that, on orders from the head of prisons in Qazvin province, he was forcibly stripped naked under false pretenses of medical transfer and verbally abused in front of other inmates, without ever being taken to the infirmary.

Mrs. Abbasi also emphasized that Mr. Bakhtiari suffers from serious health issues, including heart disease, gastrointestinal complications, and a severe urinary blockage, and remains denied medical leave or proper care. She stressed that his phone calls are heavily surveilled, and that the emotional toll on his family — especially while she herself is ill — is mounting.

She warned that his life is in grave danger, holding the Qazvin prison authorities and Iran’s judiciary directly responsible for any harm that may come to him.