Iran bears “full responsibility” for the safety of Americans held in Evin prison near Tehran, where a fire and clashes broke out on Saturday, the US State Department said.
“Iran is fully responsible for the safety of our unjustly detained citizens, who must be released immediately,” the State Department spokesman wrote in a message posted on the social network Twitter.
Ned Price added that Washington was following the development of the incident “with urgency”.
A fire and clashes broke out in Tehran’s Evin prison on Saturday night, at the end of another day marked by anti-government protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, which began a month ago.
“Clashes were reported on Saturday night,” confirmed an Iranian security official, quoted by the IRNA news agency.
But “for the moment, the situation is totally under control and calm has returned to the prison,” he added, attributing the fire “to bandits.”
A firefighter at the scene was quoted by IRNA as saying that “eight people were injured in the fire” at the prison, where several political prisoners are being held. Hundreds of people detained during the recent protests were reportedly sent to Evin, according to the France-Presse news agency.
Foreigners or people with dual nationality are also detained in Evin prison, such as the French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah or the Americans Siamak Namazi and Emad Shargi.
Also detained in this prison are the Iranian director Jafar Panahi, who has received several international awards, and the reformist politician Mostafa Tajzadeh.
Mahsa Amini, 22, died on September 16 in Tehran, three days after being arrested for violating the Islamic Republic’s dress code, according to police.
Since then, Iranian women have led the protests, with slogans against the government, while removing and burning the veils that they must wear on their heads, in front of the security forces in the streets.
According to the non-governmental organization Iran Human Rights (IHR), based in Oslo, at least 108 people were killed in the repression of these protests and hundreds were arrested.
On Friday, US President Joe Biden declared his support for “the brave women of Iran,” calling on the Tehran government to “end the violence against its citizens.”
Iranian leaders accused Washington of destabilizing their country by fomenting “riots.”
These demonstrations in Iran are the largest since the 2019 protests against rising gasoline prices in the oil-rich country.
Source: TSF
