Israeli attack on Evin prison 'amounts to a war crime,' HRW says
The Israeli attack on the political prison, during the war with Iran, killed at least 80 people, according to official Iranian statements, including "prisoners, their family members and prison staff," in addition to the destruction of several buildings in the complex, the report notes. It stresses: "Under international humanitarian law, also known as the law of war, prisons are presumed to be civilian objects."
"The Israeli strikes on Evin prison on June 23 killed and injured dozens of civilians with no apparent military target, in violation of the laws of war, and clearly constitute a war crime," said Michael Page, deputy director for the Middle East at HRW. "The Israeli attack endangered the already precarious lives of Evin's prisoners, many of whom are dissidents and activists wrongfully detained."
Between June 24 and July 29, HRW interviewed 22 people about the attack, including victims' relatives and prisoners, former Evin detainees, and others with extensive knowledge of the prison. According to the report, the NGO's investigation "found no evidence of military targets in the Evin prison complex at the time of the Israeli strikes," stating that "none of the sources interviewed, including recently released prisoners, their family members, and lawyers who have repeatedly visited the prison, reported knowledge of the presence of military personnel, weapons or Iranian military equipment within the complex."
The war between Iran and Israel, from June 13 to 25, was sparked by an initial series of "preventive strikes" carried out by Israel. During the 12 days, the Israeli army conducted, among other actions, airstrikes on Iranian soil targeting Tehran's nuclear program, while Iran fired numerous ballistic missiles at Israel until a cease-fire was reached.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Ya Libnan
38 minutes ago
- Ya Libnan
Israeli police strip-searched 3 women arrested during a protest in Tel-Aviv
Protestors block a road during an anti-government rally calling for action to secure the release of Israeli hostages held captive since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack in Tel Aviv on August 12, 2025. (Jack GUEZ / AFP) Police strip-searched three female protesters after their arrest Thursday night at a Tel Aviv demonstration demanding a Gaza hostage deal, according to a Friday report. The women were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct, Haaretz said, a charge that doesn't typically lead to strip-searches, even though police have the authority to conduct them. The women were arrested with two other men who were not strip-searched, the paper said. Two of the protesters said that they were required to pull down their pants and lift their shirts. Efrat Safran, one of the detainees, told Haaretz they were warned that ''If you resist, we'll use reasonable force.' We were left with no choice but to comply.' Safran added that this was her fourth protest-related arrest, but she had never previously been asked to undress. Another detainee said the officer justified the search as necessary to ensure she was not a danger to herself or others. According to the report, police said the search was a lawful and routine procedure, applied to all detainees, to prevent detainees from having objects that could harm them or others in the holding cell. The protesters' lawyer argued that since the detainees were suspected only of public order offenses, which do not legally justify a strip search, the procedure was an unnecessary violation of their rights. Times of Israel / AFP
Nahar Net
3 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Report: Aoun to ask Barrack to implement some of Lebanon's demands
by Naharnet Newsdesk 17 August 2025, 12:01 President Joseph Aoun insists on implementing the government's decisions on arms monopolization and his firmness is not aimed at clashing with any component, Kuwait's al-Anbaa newspaper quoted his visitors as saying. 'The Lebanese presidency will propose to U.S. envoy Tom Barrack -- who will be joined by Morgan Ortagus on his visit to Beirut on Monday -- that some of the Lebanese demands be achieved, especially as to the Israeli withdrawal from occupied Lebanese territory and securing the northern border with Syria, while acknowledging in advance that a full Israeli withdrawal seems to be unlikely,' the visitors added.
Nahar Net
3 hours ago
- Nahar Net
Syria's al-Sharaa says unifying country 'should not be with blood'
by Naharnet Newsdesk 17 August 2025, 11:08 Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has said the battle to unify his country after years of civil war "should not be with blood", rejecting any partition and accusing Israel of meddling in the south. His remarks, released by state TV on Sunday, came as hundreds demonstrated in south Syria's Sweida province, denouncing sectarian violence last month and calling for the right to self-determination for the Druze-majority province. "We still have another battle ahead of us to unify Syria, and it should not be with blood and military force... it should be through some kind of understanding because Syria is tired of war," Sharaa said during a dialogue session involving notables from the northwest province of Idlib and other senior officials. "I do not see Syria as at risk of division. Some people desire a process of dividing Syria and trying to establish cantons... this matter is impossible," he said according to a recording of the meeting, distributed overnight by state media. "Some parties seek to gain power through regional power, Israel or others. This is also extremely difficult and cannot be implemented," he said. At the protest in Sweida, some demonstrators waved the Israeli flag and called for self-determination for the region. A week of bloodshed in Sweida began on July 13 with clashes between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin, but rapidly escalated, drawing in government forces, with Israel also carrying out strikes. Syrian authorities have said their forces intervened to stop the clashes, but witnesses, Druze factions and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights have accused them of siding with the Bedouin and committing abuses against the Druze, including summary executions. Sharaa said that Sweida "witnessed many violations from all sides... some members of the security forces and army in Syria also carried out some violations". The state is required "to hold all perpetrators of violations to account", whatever their affiliation, he added. "Israel is intervening directly in Sweida, seeking to implement policies aimed at weakening the state in general or finding excuses to interfere in ongoing policies in the southern region," Sharaa said. Israel, which has its own Druze community, has said it has acted to defend the minority group as well as enforce its demands for the demilitarization of southern Syria. Syria's new authorities are also in talks with a semi-autonomous Kurdish administration that runs swathes of the country's north and northeast and has called for decentralization, which Damascus has rejected. Implementation of a March 10 deal on integrating the Kurds' semi-autonomous civil and military institutions into the state has been held up by differences between the parties. "We are now discussing the mechanisms for implementation" of the deal, Sharaa said.
