More than 100 trans prisoners are reportedly missing, and presumed dead, after the infamous Evin prison in the Iranian capital city of Tehran was hit by Israeli airstrikes.

Situated in the Evin neighbourhood of north Tehran, Evin Prison was opened in 1972 and has a long and bloody history of human rights abuses, including beatings, torture, prolonged solitary confinement, sleep deprivation and sexual abuse, alongside poor conditions. 

The prison is the main site for detaining the Islamic Republic’s political prisoners, journalists, academics and foreign citizens accused of spying – including dual-British-Iranian national Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, human rights activist Narges Mohammadi and Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert.

The prison was struck during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran on 23 June, one day before the ceasefire

“According to official figures, 71 people were killed in the attack on Evin Prison,” judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir said some days later, confirming the number of casualties 

Jahangir said the victims at Evin included administrative staff, guards, prisoners and visiting relatives as well as people living nearby.

As per reporting by The New York Times, Reza Shafakhah, a prominent human rights lawyer, said following the strike around 100 trans inmates are missing, with the authorities saying they are presumed dead after their part of the complex was destroyed. 

Shafakhah added the Iranian government often treats being trans as a crime. 

In Iran, changing your gender is legal but trans people still face significant social and political barriers, with transition only allowed on the basis a trans person receives surgery. There are no protections for trans people from hate crime or discrimination and being trans is treated as a mental illness.

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In 2019, Peace-Mark magazine published a quote reported to be by a trans inmate at Evin Prison. They said: “When you go to the Transgender Ward, you can’t even see the sunlight. The human body needs sunlight. If it’s not available, you need to take pills, but they don’t give us any. 

“During my detention, except for the two times I was transferred to the infirmary with begging and pleading, I hadn’t seen the sunlight.”