Health and Hygiene

RFL/RE – Thirty members of Iran’s parliament are in quarantine after testing positive for the omicron variant of the coronavirus. In announcing the positive tests on January 30, lawmaker Abolfasl Abutorabi said that the 290-member legislative body seeks to test all members to prevent the further spread of COVID-19, according to the semiofficial Fars news agency. The Iranian government has …

Iranwire — The Ministry of Health and Medical Education has formally announced a “sixth wave” of coronavirus infections is under way in Iran. Omicron has now become the dominant variant: something officials had previously claimed would not happen due to Iranians having “more antibodies” after the late-starting vaccination drive.   The head of Iran’s Food and Drug Administration recently claimed the country …

Iran-HRM – Political prisoner Payam Shakiba has been denied access to proper medical treatment despite contracting Covid-19 at Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison. The activist was arrested on January 3, after apearing before the Implementation Unit of Evin Prison’s Court, and was transferred to the prison to start serving a 13-month prison sentence. In September 2021, Shakiba was sentenced by Branch …

It’s now been around six weeks since Iran’s “Smart Covid Management” project first got under way. The basic premise was to use an online data processing system, dubbed Omid (Hope), to track vaccination rates across Iran. Implemented in phases, a digital QR code system was meant to give the fully-vaccinated graduated access to government buildings, public transport and other key facilities, with the unvaccinated …

Iran-HRM – In a letter from Kamyaran Prison, political prisoner Salar Sediq Hamedani referred to the torture he and his father had endured. In the letter, political prisoner Salar Sediq Hamedani, who was recently banished to Kamyaran Prison, wrote about his fathers’ illness and inability to endure imprisonment. He also explained that the confinement of political prisoners in Iran together …

Iranwire – A political prisoner who joined the seven-strong hunger strike protesting against the death of Baktash Abtin has sent IranWire an audio file from prison narrating what happened in the days before the poet’s transfer to hospital. He has also confirmed, as others suspected this week, that he and two other hunger strikers were not taken for medical treatment as the …

Iranwire – As the weather grows colder in Iran, the official figures indicate that flu cases are on the rise as usual. Simultaneously the spread of the Omicron variant has prompted as-yet unfounded rumors on Persian-language social media and in the media about the emergence of a “super-virus”. Some users are calling it “Flurona”: a combination of flu and coronavirus. …

Iranwire – The number of children aged under five in Sistan and Baluchistan who are underweight or have stunted growth is on the rise, health officials have warned. In a report on issues of malnutrition in the province, ILNA news agency put the official figure, which only counts those youngsters who have registered with a health center, at 12,000. Seyed …

Iran-HRM – Political prisoner Nejat Anvar Hamidi Karoun, who is serving a five-year sentence at the Sepidar Prison of Ahvaz, is at risk of losing her eyesight in prison. The Department of Intelligence of Ahvaz has prevented the 66 year old political prisoner, from going on medical leave despite her dire physical condition. Political prisoner Nejat Anvar Hamidi is suffering …

Iranwire – “I’ve always said and I’ll say again, we justice-seekers and freedom-seekers shouldn’t make imprisonment a red line, and mustn’t be afraid of the detention of others. We shouldn’t make it a rule to protect workers’ rights only up until the point where we are not harmed. Do we wait for benefits without spending spending money? Whoever wants a …