71 killed in Israeli attack on Tehran’s Evin prison: Iran

71 people were killed in an Israeli attack on Tehran’s Evin prison, the capital of Iran. Iranian Judiciary Spokesperson Asghar Jahangir said this on Sunday (June 29). Israeli warplanes attacked the prison on June 23 amid reciprocal attacks by the two countries.

In a statement published in Iran’s Mizan News on Sunday, Jahangir said, “71 people were martyred in the attack on Evin prison. Among them were administrative staff, young people serving in the army, prisoners, their family members who came to visit the prisoners, and neighbors living around the prison.”

He said that Israeli forces attacked at least one of the prisons where several prisoners’ family members had come to visit the prisoners. Images shared by Iran’s Judiciary showed destroyed walls, collapsed roofs, and scattered debris. Iran’s judiciary said Evin’s medical center and visiting rooms were also targeted. Iran has previously reported attacks on Evin prison but has not reported any casualties.

Evin prison holds several foreign nationals, including two French nationals, Cecile Collet and Jacques Paris, who have been held for three years. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nargis Mohammadi is also reportedly being held there. Last week, UN human rights spokesman Thamin al-Khetan said the attack on the prison was a “grave violation of international humanitarian law.”

Evin is Tehran’s most notorious political detention center. Observers say Israel’s attack on the Iranian regime’s symbols, beyond its military and nuclear facilities, is a signal that it is expanding its reach.