A prison sentence does not remove a person’s human dignity. It does not cancel the right to clean water, safe sanitation, healthcare or protection from disease.
Yet a recent report from Fardis Prison in Karaj describes women prisoners living in conditions that may place their health and lives at serious risk.
In a statement published on 17 August 2026, the Women’s Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran reported that sewage had overflowed into the recreation courtyard of Ward 1.
According to the statement, the problem is occurring during intense summer heat, prisoners have become ill and prison authorities have failed to provide adequate medical treatment.
The report names Masoumeh Senobari, Atefeh Hassani and Fatemeh Nadi Dastgirdi among the political prisoners held in the ward. It also says that prisoners have repeatedly protested against the conditions but that the necessary repairs have not been completed.
Verein Welle cannot independently inspect the prison or verify every detail of the report. Access to Iranian detention facilities is tightly restricted. These claims must therefore be clearly attributed to their source.
But limited access is not a reason for inaction. It is precisely why the United Nations must seek urgent and independent access.
A health risk that grows with every hot day
Overflowing sewage is not simply an unpleasant maintenance problem. It can expose people to bacteria, parasites and viruses and may contaminate surfaces, water and living spaces.
In a crowded prison, where people cannot leave the environment or choose alternative sanitation facilities, the risk can spread quickly.
Extreme heat makes the danger more severe. High temperatures can worsen dehydration, cardiovascular illness, respiratory conditions and infections.
Older prisoners and people with chronic illnesses or disabilities may face particularly serious risks. Medicines may also become less effective or harder to store safely when temperatures are uncontrolled.
Prisoners depend entirely on the authorities for ventilation, water, cleaning, medication and access to doctors. When authorities fail to provide these basic services, detainees have no safe way to protect themselves.
The NCRI Women’s Committee alleges that sick women have been denied treatment and that officials cited a lack of funds when prisoners demanded repairs.
It further reports that action was made dependent on possible donations from benefactors.
These allegations require independent verification, but the state’s legal responsibility is clear: essential sanitation and healthcare in a prison cannot be transferred to prisoners, their families or private donors.
What international standards require
The United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, state that all prisoners must be treated with respect for their inherent dignity and value as human beings.
The rules require prison accommodation to meet health requirements, including adequate air, space, lighting and ventilation.
Sanitary installations must allow prisoners to meet their needs in a clean and decent manner. Prisoners must also have access to drinking water and healthcare services without discrimination.
The UN Bangkok Rules provide additional standards addressing the particular needs of women prisoners.
Together, these rules establish an important principle: healthcare in prison is a state responsibility, and prisoners should receive a standard of care equivalent to that available in the community.
If sewage is overflowing into a courtyard, extreme heat is worsening illnesses and medical treatment is being withheld, the situation may violate several of these minimum protections.
Prolonged exposure to such conditions may also raise concerns under the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
Medical neglect is not an administrative detail
People in detention cannot make their own appointments with outside doctors, freely purchase medicine or move to a safer building.
A delayed hospital transfer, an unanswered request for care or a refusal to repair sanitation can therefore have consequences far beyond ordinary administrative negligence.
In women’s prisons, authorities must also ensure access to gender-specific healthcare, menstrual hygiene materials, mental health support and appropriate reproductive and pregnancy-related care.
Political affiliation, legal status or the nature of a person’s conviction must never determine whether she receives treatment.
Reports of denial of care must be examined individually.
Authorities should document who requested medical help, what symptoms were reported, when a clinician assessed the patient, what treatment was offered and whether outside hospital care was medically necessary.
Without transparent records and independent access, prisoners and their families remain unable to challenge medical neglect.
Why independent access is urgently needed
The most responsible response is neither to dismiss the report nor to repeat every allegation as a proven fact. It is to demand independent verification.
The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran and the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls should urgently request information about conditions in Ward 1 of Fardis Prison.
They should seek information about:
- The number of prisoners affected
- The status of sewage repairs
- Access to safe drinking water
- Ventilation and cooling facilities
- The identities and conditions of sick prisoners
- Medical consultations and hospital transfers
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights should call for immediate protective measures while the allegations are investigated.
Relevant UN experts working on health, torture, safe water and sanitation should also be informed.
Iranian authorities should permit independent medical and sanitary inspections and allow confidential interviews with prisoners without retaliation.
Prisoners who raised concerns must be protected from punishment, forced transfer, isolation or loss of contact with their families.
Welle’s role: making hidden conditions visible
Verein Welle works independently from Switzerland to document human rights concerns and bring hidden prison conditions to international attention.
We do not treat a single political source as the final word. We attribute claims carefully and connect individual cases with recognised international human rights standards.
This work matters because dangerous prison conditions often remain invisible until someone dies or suffers irreversible harm.
Early international attention can encourage inspections, medical transfers, repairs and protection for prisoners who speak out.
For Swiss readers, the principle is simple and universal: a person in state custody is under the protection of the state.
The loss of liberty must never become exposure to disease, extreme heat or untreated illness.
Urgent action before conditions become fatal
The reported conditions in Fardis Prison require immediate action, not a delayed administrative review.
Sewage must be removed safely, damaged infrastructure repaired, clean water and effective cooling provided, and every sick prisoner examined by qualified medical professionals.
Anyone requiring specialised care must be transferred to an appropriate medical facility without delay.
Welle calls on the United Nations and relevant international institutions to request access, preserve testimony and monitor the condition of the women held in Ward 1.
We also urge international medical and prisoners’ rights organisations to raise these concerns through their professional networks.
Please share this report and support independent human rights documentation. No woman should have to become critically ill before the world pays attention to conditions behind prison walls.
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