Human Rights Watch: Israeli strike on Iran’s Evin Prison was ‘apparent war crime’

Human Rights Watch alleges that an Israeli airstrike on a notorious Iranian prison was “an apparent war crime,” while also accusing Tehran of harming and disappearing prisoners after the attack.

Israel struck Evin Prison in Tehran, one of Iran’s most notorious detention facilities for political activists and dissidents, on June 23, during its 12-day war with the Islamic Republic.

The strikes during visiting hours hit Evin Prison’s main southern entrance, another northern entrance and other areas of the complex, destroying buildings that had medical facilities and prison wards.

The Iranian authorities initially said at least 71 people were killed during the airstrike, among them civilians including inmates, visiting relatives, and prison staff. Iranian media later raised that number to 80.

IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin has previously stated that “within the prison compound, intelligence activity was carried out against Israel, including counterespionage,” and that the strike had been carried out “in a pinpoint manner, to avoid harm to those uninvolved.”

Human Rights Watch says the attack was “unlawfully indiscriminate” and that there was no evidence of an advance warning or a military target before striking the prison complex, which it estimates holds over 1,500 prisoners.

“To make matters worse, Israeli forces put at grave risk prisoners who were already victims of Iranian authorities’ brutal repression,” says Michael Page, the rights group’s deputy Middle East director.

Human Rights Watch says prisoners were subject to “ill-treatment and violence” both as they were being taken out of the prison following the attack and as they were returned. The group says some of the prisoners have disappeared, including Swedish-Iranian doctor Ahmadreza Djalali, who is at risk of execution. The rights group says Iran has refused to give it any information about his whereabouts.

Calls to Iranian authorities are not immediately returned on Thursday, a public holiday in the country. The Israeli military also does not respond to an immediate request for comment on the Human Rights Watch reports.

Amnesty International has also called for a war crimes probe into the Evin strike.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.