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During his testimony on Thursday, Ashrafian described Gohardasht prison\u2019s chain of command.<\/p>\n
\u201cMohammad Mogheyseh, also known as \u2018Nasserian,\u2019 was in charge of the prison. As far as I know, Hamid Abbasi [Noury] was his [Nasserian\u2019s] deputy. And\u202fDavoud\u202fLashgari\u202fwas in charge of prison security,\u201d Ashrafian said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNasserian\u202fand Abbasi [Noury] prevented us from\u202fexercising\u202fin\u202fprison. In June 1987, we were exercising in the prison\u2019s\u202fcourtyard.\u202fSuddenly 20-30 guards\u202fcame into the\u202fcourtyard\u202fand prevented us from doing our exercises. They beat us with\u202fcables, batons,\u202fand metal rods. They blindfolded us and pushed us into the main building,\u201d Ashrafian described his first encounter with Noury.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey took us to a small hall on the second floor, which the prisoners called the \u2018gas chamber.\u2019\u202fThey pushed us into the hall as we were still sweating from the exercise and they closed all\u202fthe airways\u2026 after a couple of hours we were all suffocating,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the inmates, Kambiz Ostovari, protested the situation and knocked on the door. They took him out and beath him,\u201d Ashrafian said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter that, they\u202ftook out the rest of us. The guards\u202fstood in two lines and formed a tunnel. They\u202fpushed us through the tunnel as we still had blindfolds and they beat has as we passed. I could hear\u202fHamid Abbasi\u2019s [Noury] voice who was saying, \u2018Beat these\u202fMonafeghs\u202f[the term the mullahs use to refer to MEK members and supporters] so that they don\u2019t do such things,\u2019\u201d\u202fAshrafian\u202fsaid.<\/p>\n
In another part of his testimony, Ashrafian described his encounter with Noury after the 1988 massacre.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn September 1988, we\u202fwere 53 prisoners in Ward 3. Before the\u202fmassacre, there were 200 people.\u202fOf these, six or seven were charged with offenses other than supporting the MEK, while\u202f190 of them were\u202fMEK\u202fsupporters. Of these 200 people, only 53 remained,\u201d\u202fAshrafian\u202fsaid. \u201cIn September, the guards came and blindfolded us and took us\u202fto ward 13. This is where they brought all prisoners who had survived the massacre. They took a few others in the lower ward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn early October, Abbasi [Noury] and Nasserian came to our ward with several other guards,\u201d Ashrafian recalled during his testimony.<\/p>\n
\u201cNasserian\u202f[Moghiseh] started threatening us as was his habit. He said, \u2018We killed all of them and we will kill the\u202frest of you later.\u202fThe era where you could protest, and\u202fstage\u202fstrikes is over. Don\u2019t think our hands are tied. We can execute you like the rest anytime we want.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Ashrfian encountered Noury one last time in November.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u201cI was transferred to solitary\u202fconfinement in November 1988\u2026 Then they took me to\u202fthe lower Ward 1, which was called the\u202fJahad\u202fWard.\u202fWe\u202fwere about 70 prisoners who had been transferred here after the 1988 massacre,\u201d\u202fAshrafian\u202fsaid. \u201cThere were several cells. Around mid-November, Abbasi and several other guards\u202fto our section.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe told them about\u202fthe problems of the ward, such as lack of warm water and hygiene\u202fissues,\u201d\u202fAshrafian\u202fsaid.\u202f\u201cInstead of solving our problems, Abbasi said, \u2018Go and thank God that you are\u202falive. If we wanted to execute the fatwa of the Imam\u2014he meant Khomeini\u2014completely, we would have to arrest and execute half of the\u202fpeople of Iran.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
In the summer of 1988l, the \u201cDeath Commissions,\u201d across Iran sentenced thousands of Iranian prisoners, mostly MEK members to execution. These commissions implemented a fatwa by the regime\u2019s then-Supreme Leader, Ruhollah Khomeini. In his fatwa, Khomeini had underlined that all prisoners, mainly the MEK supporters, should be executed if they refuse to disavow their ideals.<\/p>\n
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Iran: A Fatwa Which Took the Life of 30,000 Political Prisoners in 1988 Massacre<\/div><\/div>
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In another part of his testimony, Ashrafian shared what he saw during the massacre. On July 30, the guards take the TV out. They had canceled all family visits starting July 26.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn those days, they gave us a list and told us to write down our names, accusations, and how long do we have until the end of our sentence,\u201d Ashrfian said, adding \u201cthis happened once every two days.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOn July 30, I was alone in a room where we kept our bags. I saw Davoud Lashgari from window. He was armed, and five or six other plainclothes agents were near him. I also saw two Afghani prisoners with them. They were carrying wheelbarrows filled with hanging ropes. They were going to the warehouse,\u201d Ashrafian said. He calls other prisoners, including Mohammad Zand to see this. One of the prisoners tells Ashrafian that these ropes are for execution.<\/p>\n
This warehouse later became known as the \u201cDeath Hall,\u201d where prisoners were hanged.<\/p>\n
Ashrafian later shared what he went through during the 1988 massacre.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn August 1, I was transferred to the third floor while blindfolded. I sat in the hall, two or three meters apart from the next individual.\u202fLashgari\u202fhad placed a table in\u202fthe\u202fhallway,\u202fand they would take the blindfolded prisoners to him where they would ask questions. Name, surname, father\u2019s name,\u202ffirst of kin family members who are in prison. Then your opinion about the Islamic republic. Then what is your opinion about the MEK? Are\u202fyou willing to conduct an interview?\u201d\u202fAshrafian\u202fsaid.\u202f\u201cWe would say we are supporters. Those who replied we are MEK supporters were separated and taken to other wards and cells. I wasn\u2019t brave enough to say, like the others, that I\u2019m a MEK supporter. I and a few others were returned to the ward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOn August 3, I was walking in the Hosseiniyeh room when I heard the sound of a vehicle,\u201d Ashrafian said adding that prisoners, \u201crushed to the windows. There were five of us there.\u202fWe heard the slight sound of vehicles and we saw two trucks in the road, one on each side of the road.\u202fOne of the vehicles had the\u202fengine\u202frunning.\u201d<\/p>\n
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