More than thirty years ago, I was imprisoned in Iran for eight years and tortured just for taking to the streets to demand freedom. When I first arrived in the United Kingdom, my mind was still trapped in prison. I saw the faces of friends who had been executed. I heard the firing squad and the sounds of my fellow prisoners being tortured. Therapy at Freedom from Torture helped me slowly rebuild my life. Over time, I began to feel safe again. In the past five years, the organisation has supported more survivors from Iran than any other country. These are men and women who have endured some of the most unimaginable forms of brutality.
Reports of ongoing abuses coming out of Iran are deeply triggering because we know exactly what the regime is capable of. And with this latest wave of protests and conflict, many more survivors are likely to desperately need the same specialist clinical support that helped me recover. I was lucky. I escaped. I had the chance to heal and start again. But my heart aches for the women and men still enduring the same torture I suffered. But when the global media spotlight is placed on individual prisoners in Iran, the regime often eases the pressure. Public attention can save lives.
In the last few weeks reports emerged that Narges Mohammadi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who has written of the torture she has suffered in prison, was seriously ill and being denied medical treatment. Finally, authorities temporarily suspended her sentence and released her on bail. I am relieved she is finally receiving the support she needs. But her case exposes a cruel reality: countless prisoners remain behind bars. Many have died because they were denied medical treatment. Many more have suffered for years in silence. Too often, the international community’s focus is on geopolitical power struggles rather than the devastation wrought on the lives of ordinary people. I wish there was more attention on those condemned to execution and those denied their most basic rights. Today, during the recent escalation and war, the human rights situation has become even worse. Executions are now surging as the war provides an opportunity to intensify repression. And I have seen this before. In 1988, as the eight-year war between Iran and Iraq came to an end, I witnessed the regime carry out the mass execution of political prisoners across the country. I fear history is repeating itself. The regime showed its hand during the recent nationwide demonstrations in December (2025) and January (2026) when it unleashed lethal force on protestors . Thousands of people are reported to have been killed by the regime's bullets.
The war has brought more death and destruction. Loved ones, homes and jobs have all been lost. Once again, it is the Iranian people who are paying the price. Since the US and Israel struck Iran on 28 February 2026, over 4,000 people in the country have been arrested on national security charges . Many have been disappeared and tortured. Political prisoners have been executed and reports of forced “confessions” , extracted through torture are common. These tactics are not new ones. The regime has often labelled dissidents as foreign agents. The Iranian regime does not want the world to know about its abuses. That is why we must keep talking about those on death row after torture-tainted “confessions”, those who are tortured for simply standing up for their rights, and those left to languish in prison without medical care. By speaking their names, we help them stay alive. The media also has a vital role to play in keeping a spotlight on my country so that those fighting for their rights are not forgotten and abuses cannot be hidden in the shadows. We must stand shoulder to shoulder with the Iranian people in their struggle for a life free from torture. Nasrin Parvaz is an activist and author. Her works include ‘One Woman's Struggle in Iran, A Prison Memoir’ (Award-Winner in the Women’s Issues category of the 2019 International Book Awards), and ‘The Secret Letters from X to A’, (Victorina Press 201 . Nasrin has also written for The Guardian, The Morning star, LBC and Huck magazine among others. Have questions or comments? Email us at: editorial-english@alaraby.co.uk . Opinions expressed in this article remain those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The New Arab, its editorial board or staff.