NCRI – According to the families of death-row prisoners who are detained in the central prison of Karaj, the prison authorities told them that the sentences of all those sentenced to death, about 110 to 120 people, will be implemented before the start of Iranian New Year on 20 March 2017 in the Central Prison of Karaj. The announcement caused panic and concerns among the prisoners and their families.
In addition, reports indicate that the guards in central prison of Karaj have transferred the death-row prisoners, particularly the prisoners incarcerated in Ward 5, to different wards of the prison.
The families say that prison official moved the death-row prisoners to different wards in order to prevent protests and rioting during their transfer for implementation of the sentences.
It should be pointed out that prison officials strongly fear protests inside the prisons, in particular prisons where there are high number of death-row prisoners. Because of this fear and in order to prevent protests, they often enter the prison cells unannounced and forcefully transfer the prisoners to solitary confinement first while handcuffing and shackling and blindfolding them before taking them for implementation of the death sentence.