From ... in Warfare Health History — Aug 14, 2025

Iran: Israeli Attack on Evin Prison an Apparent War Crime

(Beirut) – Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s Evin prison complex in Tehran on June 23, 2025, were unlawfully indiscriminate and an apparent war crime, Human Rights Watch said today. The strikes hit several buildings across the complex and killed

(Beirut) – Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s Evin prison complex in Tehran on June 23, 2025, were unlawfully indiscriminate and an apparent war crime, Human Rights Watch said today.

The strikes hit several buildings across the complex and killed at least 80 people, according to official Iranian statements, including prisoners, their family members, and prison staff, in the absence of any evident military target. Over 1,500 prisoners are believed to have been held at Evin prison at the time of the attack, including many activists and dissidents held by the Iranian government in violation of their rights.

The strikes, during visiting hours, significantly damaged the visitation hall, central kitchen, medical clinic, and sections where prisoners were held, including political prisoners. “Israel’s strikes on Evin prison on June 23 killed and injured scores of civilians without any evident military target in violation of the laws of war and is an apparent war crime,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The Israeli attack placed at grave risk the already precarious lives of Evin’s prisoners, many of them wrongfully detained dissidents and activists.” Between June 24 and July 29, Human Rights Watch interviewed 22 people about the attack, including relatives of victims and prisoners, former Evin prisoners, and others with extensive knowledge of the prison. Human Rights Watch wrote to Iranian and Israeli authorities on July 2 and 7, respectively, seeking information but has not received responses. Human Rights Watch also analyzed and verified videos and photographs of the Israeli strikes published by media outlets and on social media, as well as material shared directly with researchers, and satellite imagery from before and after the strikes. Human Rights Watch was unable to visit the site, as Iran does not permit access to independent human rights organizations.

The investigation into the June 23 attack on Evin prison is part of a broader Human Rights Watch inquiry into the June 13-25 hostilities between Israel and Iran, including Iranian ballistic missile attacks on populated areas in Israel. Israeli forces carried out strikes on Evin prison, a 43-hectare compound in Tehran’s District 1, between 11:17 a.m. and 12:18 p.m. on June 23. No advance warning is known to have been given. Satellite imagery, videos, and witness accounts show strikes damaging buildings hundreds of meters apart. The strikes destroyed the prison’s main southern entrance and another in the north.

The visitors’ information building, adjacent to the main entrance, was completely destroyed. Family members of prisoners and former prisoners said that many families frequent the visitors’ building, including to deliver clothing and medicine.

The strikes also hit the visitation hall, a judicial complex housing assistant prosecutors, and significantly damaged or destroyed several buildings in the prison’s central premises, where the medical clinic and several prison wards are located. Two political prisoners in the prison’s central Ward 4, Abolfazl Ghadiani and Mehdi Mahmoudian, described in a publicly available account the “sounds of repeated explosions” at midday near their ward.

They saw the medical clinic burning, and the food and hygiene warehouse destroyed. By 2:00 p.m., they said, prisoners had extricated 15 to 20 bodies from the rubble, including those of other prisoners, medical clinic personnel, warehouse workers, and guards and officials from Section 209, a detention facility run by the Intelligence Ministry where dissidents are routinely detained. Dr. Saeedeh Makarem, who volunteered at the medical clinic, posted on Instagram that after the strikes, prisoners rescued her from the rubble. She subsequently underwent major surgery, including hand replantation. State media reported that a physician was also killed in the clinic. The strikes damaged buildings and vehicles outside the northern parts of the prison complex, killing and injuring residents, including Mehrangiz Imenpour, a 61-year-old artist. Domestic media reported that Ali Asghar Pazouki, a 69-year-old businessman, was killed outside the compound. Human Rights Watch found damage either to, or in the vicinity of, prison sections used to hold people accused of national security offenses, including activists and dissidents.

These included Wards 4 and 8, Sections 209, 240, 241, 2A, and the women’s ward.

The main quarantine section, where transgender prisoners were held, was also damaged. Iranian authorities have not reported on the condition or whereabouts of many prisoners from these sections, which amounts to enforced disappearances in violation of international human rights law. Under international humanitarian law, also known as the laws of war, prisons are presumptively civilian objects. Human Rights Watch’s investigation found no evidence of any military targets at the Evin prison complex at the time of the Israeli strikes. None of the sources interviewed, including recently released prisoners, family members, and lawyers who have repeatedly been to the prison said that they were aware of any Iranian military personnel, arms, or material within the compound. Statements by Israeli ministers immediately after the attack made no claims of military targets within the prison compound but framed the strikes as part of Israel’s attacks on Iran’s repressive institutions. Israel Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote immediately after the attack that Israel struck Evin prison due to its function as an “agency of government repression.” Foreign Affairs Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s post on X indicated that Evin prison had been struck in retaliation for Iran’s attacks on civilians in Israel. Several hours after the strikes, Israel’s military confirmed the attack, and a military spokesperson alleged, without evidence or details, that Iran carried out “intelligence operations against the state of Israel, including counter-espionage” in the prison. An Israeli military spokesperson repeated the same allegations that day in a media interview.

The Israel Defense Forces’ statement reiterated previous government statements that Evin prison was a “symbol of oppression for the Iranian people.” The laws of war applicable to the international armed conflict between Israel and Iran prohibit attacks that target civilians and civilian objects, that do not discriminate between civilians and combatants, or that are expected to cause harm to civilians or civilian objects disproportionate to any anticipated military advantage. Indiscriminate attacks include those not directed at a specific military target. Even if some individuals at Evin prison were Iranian military personnel, the large-scale attack would have been unlawfully disproportionate. Serious laws of war violations committed by individuals with criminal intent – that is, deliberately or recklessly – are war crimes. Governments are obligated to investigate alleged war crimes by their forces, or on their territory, and appropriately prosecute those responsible. Both Israel and Iran have track records of impunity and unwillingness to investigate in line with international law, let alone prosecute possible war crimes by their forces. All governments have an obligation to cooperate with each other, to the extent possible, to facilitate the investigation and appropriate prosecution of alleged war crimes. “The unlawful Israeli attack on Evin prison highlights the consequences of longstanding impunity for serious laws of war violations,” Page said. “To make matters worse, Israeli forces put at grave risk prisoners who were already victims of Iranian authorities’ brutal repression.” On June 13, Israel carried out a series of attacks on Iran that continued until a ceasefire went into effect on June 25. Israeli military attacks included strikes on populated areas; on oil, gas, and nuclear facilities; and on Evin prison. In response, the Iranian military launched a series of ballistic missile and drone attacks against Israel, hitting populated areas as well as a power station, an oil refinery, and a hospital. On June 22, the United States became a party to the conflict by carrying out airstrikes on Iran’s Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities. Iran responded on June 23 by launching missiles at a US airbase in Qatar. Iranian authorities have not published detailed data regarding people killed and injured during the conflict, including a breakdown of civilian and military casualties. On July 16, an Iranian government spokesperson stated that 1,062 people, including 140 children and women, were killed as a result of Israeli strikes, and 5,800 were injured. Iran’s health minister stated on July 9 that about 700 of those killed were civilians. Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRANA), a US-based group, reported that 1,190 people were killed, including at least 436 civilians. Israel’s Foreign Affairs Ministry reported 30 civilians, including 4 children, were killed in Israel during the hostilities and 3,343 people were treated in hospitals for injuries from Iranian strikes. On July 9, a spokesperson for Iran’s Judiciary announced that 80 people had been killed as a result of the strikes on Evin Prison. According to official statements, casualties included judicial and prosecution officials, prison staff, prisoners and their family members, other visitors to the prison, and people living in neighboring residential areas. Informed sources told Human Rights Watch they believe the casualty figures are most likely higher. The authorities have not released the names of all 80 people reported to have died. Iran’s Prisons Organization and state media have published the names and images of 41 prison staff who died, including 5 female social workers, a social worker’s 5-year-old son, and 13 young men performing mandatory national service. Those performing mandatory national service in prisons fall under the auspices of the Prisons’ Organization and the national police force, and typically guard the premises, transfer prisoners, and carry out administrative duties and other basic tasks.

They are neither combatants under the laws of war nor civilians directly participating in hostilities and so cannot be targeted. Officials have confirmed the deaths of five prisoners but have not released their names. This is particularly alarming and creates hardship for prisoners’ families, especially because the various Iranian intelligence agencies using Evin Prison have longstanding records of enforced disappearance of dissidents and activists. Reza Khandan, a wrongfully detained human rights defender, stated in his account of the attack that among prisoners killed were those who worked in the prison compound or its administrative sections. In addition to the list of prison staff published by state media and institutions, Human Rights Watch, drawing from publicly available information, as well as accounts from informed sources, identified several civilians killed during the attack.

They are Hasti (Hajar) Mohammadi, who went to the prison to work for the release of debt prisoners; Leila Jafarzadeh, who was at the prison to post bail for her jailed husband; Ali Asghar Pazouki, a businessman who was near the northern judicial complex; and Mehrangiz Imenpour, an artist and neighborhood resident. The authorities have not released any figures on the number of people injured in the attack.

The relative of someone killed told Human Rights Watch that during their search for their loved one, they were given a list of names of 20 to 25 people injured from one hospital alone. Human Rights Watch confirmed, based on satellite imagery, thermal anomaly data, accounts of informed sources, and first online reports and videos, that the Israeli strikes on Evin prison took place on June 23 between 11:17 a.m. and 12:18 p.m. At 1:21 p.m. Tehran time, Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz confirmed on his X account that the Israeli military had struck targets in Tehran, including Evin prison. Based on satellite imagery from June 25, Human Rights Watch identified eight apparent impact sites within the prison compound. However, given that satellite images collected on June 23 and 25 – before and after the strikes – were low resolution and debris clearance operations were underway as early as June 25, Human Rights Watch could not confirm with certainty that all eight sites were the result of a direct impact with a detonation at the point of impact. Due to the resolution of satellite imagery, the exact number and precise locations of the impact sites are approximate. Similarly, in cases in which videos and photographs emerged after clearing operations had already begun, Human Rights Watch was not able to determine whether all visible damage was solely attributable to the Israeli attack. Human Rights Watch was not able to obtain any images or videos depicting Israeli munitions used during the attacks. No identifiable weapon fragments or remnants of guidance systems are visible in the available media coverage or information released by Iranian authorities. Based on videos and satellite images reviewed, repair of damage to the prison began shortly after the attack and included filling in blast craters. A visual comparison of each impact site shows that the scale of damage at locations varied, indicating that more than one type and size of munition was used in the attack. For example, based on the images reviewed, at least one munition appears to have penetrated the Administrative Building’s roof, with its detonation occurring only after it entered deeper in the structure, indicating the use of a delayed-action fuze. On June 24, a spokesperson for Iran’s police force, FARAJA, announced that its bomb squad had successfully neutralized and disposed of two undetonated “missiles” from prison premises. But they did not provide further details on the type of munitions removed or provide any photos. Israeli strikes on the southern part of the prison compound almost totally destroyed the main entrance and its adjacent building. Human Rights Watch verified two videos of the immediate aftermath of the strike on the prison’s main entrance, published on June 23. One video, posted online at 3:01 p.m. and composed of clips edited together, shows the near-total destruction of the eastern side of the entrance and a building east of the gate, identified by several informed sources as the “visitors’ information” building. Several sources and domestic media reports said that a facility for people performing mandatory national service was in the main entrance area, most likely behind the visitors’ information building. Sources said that people serving mandatory national service are stationed at the prison entrance, tasked with guarding, assisting visitors, and accompanying prisoners during transfers. A video posted by state media on July 4 containing clips apparently filmed in the immediate aftermath of the attack shows a large crater caused by the munition in the northwestern angle of the visitors’ information building. A witness who was outside the main entrance immediately after the strikes told Human Rights Watch that they saw a crater at the entrance and several injured and possibly dead people, including those serving mandatory national service. Human Rights Watch analyzed two videos and five photographs published by state and international media between June 29 and July 4 depicting destruction to the prosecutorial office within Evin prison, Shaheed Moghaddas Office of the Prosecutor, including a large hole in the ceiling and damage to walls. Leila Jafarzadeh, whose husband was imprisoned in Evin prison, was reported to have been in the prosecutor’s office at the time of the attack to post bail for his release and was killed. State media reported that her body was recovered several days later. Lawyers and others said that during office hours, the prosecutor’s office was packed with prisoners, summoned individuals, prisoners’ families, and lawyers. Human Rights Watch identified, based on a verified video and two photographs, damage to the southeastern corner of the prison compound, including a surrounding wall, and dozens of vehicles parked along the southwestern parking lot. Human Rights Watch analyzed information that shows significant destruction and damage to buildings in the central premises of the compound. Based on satellite imagery analysis, videos, photographs, and accounts of prisoners and informed sources, at least four apparent impact sites were identified in the central section. Videos and images Human Rights Watch analyzed show severe damage to the Administrative Building, in particular its eastern facade and second floor. Damages to an adjacent building, identified by sources who spoke with Human Rights Watch as the prison’s Security/Protection Unit, are also discernible.

The unit operates under the head of Iran’s Prisons Organization, which is under the judiciary’s auspices, and based on regulations, is tasked with maintaining prison security, carrying out prisoner transfers, and preventing and controlling riots and escapes. One verified video published by state media at 5:50 p.m. on June 23 appears to have been taken in the immediate aftermath of the attack. It shows the Administrative Building’s second floor windows completely blown out with debris falling out. Human Rights Watch also reviewed footage posted online on July 6 showing the floors of one section inside the multistorey building collapsed onto one another. A hole is visible in the ceiling above the damaged area. Several human rights defenders and former Evin prisoners said that the Administrative Building was large, with several floors, including the social workers’ office and a “technology room,” where prisoners permitted to pursue their education would take exams. Domestic media reported that five female social workers at the prison were killed in the strike on the Administrative Building, along with a five-year-old boy. Satellite imagery and two videos analyzed also show damage to the buildings east of the Administrative Building. Several formerly detained activists and journalists said the damaged building, which some former prisoners said they called the “motori building,” was used to register new prisoners and detainees and process prisoner transfers. Based on publicly available accounts by prisoners and informed sources, the quarantine section of the prison, used to hold new detainees, adjacent to the “motori” building, was also damaged. Several sources said that transgender prisoners were held there. A verified video published by state media on the day of the attack shows damage to the general area where the quarantine section and a small road leading to Section 2A are located. The Iranian singer Danial Moghaddam, in a post on his Instagram account, said that he was detained on June 22 and held in room 4 of the prison’s quarantine section. He said that around noon on June 23, as a result of the explosion, parts of the quarantine section’s walls, ceiling, and windows collapsed on prisoners. Moghaddam also said that after exiting the quarantine, he saw casualties and items of clothing under the rubble in the area.

The strikes also hit the area north of the prison clinic, severely damaging the clinic and nearby buildings, including Ward 4, the central kitchen, and a covered vehicle passage adjacent to the clinic. A human rights defender imprisoned at Evin until shortly before the attack told Human Rights Watch that besides the medical personnel, “the clinic is always full of prisoners.” Political prisoners Abolfazl Ghadiani and Mehdi Mahmoudian, in a publicly available account, referred to two or three strikes in proximity to Ward 4.

They described damage to Ward 4, the clinic and nearby facilities, and Section 209. Human Rights Watch analyzed videos and photographs showing damage to the prison clinic and other buildings in the vicinity. One verified video posted online on the day of the attack shows smoke plumes rising from buildings surrounding the clinic.

The clinic’s northern facade is burned. Another video, composed of several clips edited together and published by state media on June 25, shows significant damage to the buildings opposite the clinic, including the central kitchen and Ward 4. Human Rights Watch corroborated videos and photographs of the clinic’s interior and various rooms with former prisoners who had been inside the clinic.

The images show damage to a treatment room used for small procedures and injections, the nursing station, a doctor’s consultation room, a laboratory, and the CPR, physiotherapy, and medicine storage rooms. In a statement published within hours of the strike, Evin prisoners referred to the partial destruction of Ward 4. Two prisoners’ family members said that their imprisoned relatives described damage to Ward 4 and injuries to prisoners. A Ward 4 prisoner, whose statement was obtained by a human rights group and shared with researchers, said that nearby strikes resulted in the collapse of part of the ward’s ceiling and walls.

The strikes on Evin’s central premises damaged a building opposite Section 209. Former prisoners told Human Rights Watch that the building was used for storage, with administrative and management functions for Section 209 in the southern part of the building. Satellite imagery from June 27 shows major destruction to the building, with roof sections collapsed. Debris and burn scars are visible along the road separating the building from Section 209. Given the proximity between these two buildings, and extensive damage to the storage building, it appears likely that the eastern facade of Section 209 was also severely damaged, most likely exceeding what is visible in the satellite imagery.

The Ward 4 prisoner whose account was obtained by a human rights group and shared with Human Rights Watch, said he saw several wounded people or bodies removed from Section 209 and the clinic. An informed source said that prisoners in the women’s ward, where about 70 political prisoners were held, described a “terrifying blast impact.” An image identified as the ward by former prisoners showed ceiling damage. No other photos or video footage of this area were published. As a result, Human Rights Watch could not independently assess the extent of damages to Section 209 or to the women’s ward. Human Rights Watch identified at least two apparent impact sites in Evin Prison’s northern premises.

The strikes destroyed the joint northern entrance to the prison’s visitation hall and Shaheed Kachoui Judicial complex, in the northeastern corner of the compound. Two videos that Human Rights Watch verified and geolocated to Ahmadpour Street, north of the prison compound, show the immediate aftermath of the strike. A shadow analysis indicates they were filmed around noon. In one video, two men in civilian attire assist another man, dazed and apparently injured. In another, a man in a bloodied shirt is shouting instructions at others while smoke plumes rise from the prison compound. Human Rights Watch verified another video posted online by state media on June 24 and composed of several clips edited together, showing destruction of the joint entrance, its parking area and the inside of the building.

The first clip shows the gate completely destroyed and walls surrounding it significantly damaged.

The rest of the video shows damage and destruction inside the building, including the offices of assistant prosecutors and the visitation hall waiting area, strewn with debris and staircases stained with blood. Informed sources said that offices of assistant prosecutors in the Kachoui complex were on an upper floor of the visitation hall, a larger building stretching south of the compound.

They said that the strikes took place during the office and visitation hours, running from 8 a.m. to 12.30 p.m., when a large number of visitors, including families of prisoners, would have been there. Former prisoners said that the Kachoui complex deals with the judicial affairs of convicted prisoners, including requests for prison leave and conditional release. Strikes on the northeastern premises of Evin compound impacted the internal road connecting the north and central sections of the prison.

The impact site is less than 20 meters from Sections 240 and 241. A video posted online on June 23 at 3:00 p.m. and verified by Human Rights Watch shows the walls on both sides of the road in front of Sections 240 and 241 almost completely destroyed. Satellite imagery recorded on June 27 also showed a large impact visible on the internal road connecting the north and central sections of the prison. Families of prisoners and other informed sources said that windows in Ward 8, where many political prisoners were held, were shattered. Mohammad Nourizad, a political prisoner in Ward 8, in a June 23 phone call with his relatives, described the shattering of windows and injuries to prisoners. Nourizad said “they just hit us again,” indicating that the strikes were ongoing. A recording of the call was made public on June 23 at 1:30 p.m. local time. Human Rights Watch corroborated that the call was made at noon during the strikes. .

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Iran: Israeli Attack on Evin Prison an Apparent War Crime

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