The representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Iran has visited Tehran’s Evin prison following last month’s Israeli airstrike that killed 79 people there, expressing shock over the extent of the attack, which he denounced as a violation of international law.
Vincent Cassard made the remarks on Wednesday as he visited the facility. He was accompanied by Pir Hossein Kolivand, head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), and Heshmatollah Hayat al-Ghaib, director general of Tehran Province Prisons Organization.
Cassard thanked Kolivand for allowing him to see firsthand the destruction caused by the Israeli attack on the Evin prison’s visitation hall, kitchen, infirmary, administrative building, and other sections. He also noted that he was shocked that civilians, families of prisoners, and ordinary people were targeted and affected by the Israeli strike.
The Red Cross official further said the ICRC monitors the implementation of international humanitarian law, which strictly prohibits any attack on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including prisons. Hospitals and medical centers are also protected under international humanitarian law, and they should never be a target for attacks.
The Israeli airstrike on the Evin prison took place on June 23 during the inmates’ visitation hours with their families and social workers. It killed 79 people, including prison administrative staff, soldiers, inmates, families of the prisoners who had come for visitation or legal follow-ups, humanitarian workers, and people living nearby.
Kolivand said that Iran has sent reports to the ICRC and the prosecutor of The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) regarding the Israeli atrocity.
The Geneva Conventions prohibit the bombardment of civilian targets, including prisons, and consider them to be a crime, he added.
On June 13, Israel launched a blatant and unprovoked aggression against Iran, assassinating many high-ranking military commanders, nuclear scientists, and ordinary civilians. More than a week later, the United States also jumped on the bandwagon and bombed three Iranian nuclear sites in a grave violation of international law.
In response, Iranian armed forces targeted strategic sites across the occupied territories as well as the al-Udeid air base in Qatar, the largest American military base in West Asia.
On June 24, Iran, through its successful retaliatory operations against both the Israeli regime and the United States, managed to impose a halt to the illegal assault.
