Evin Prison

District 2, Iran

Not open to the public

On private land.

Evin Prison is a detention facility located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran, built in 1963 in the Pahlavi architectural style. Established as a prison in 1972, it became the Islamic Republic's primary site for holding political prisoners following the 1979 revolution and has since earned international notoriety for systematic human rights abuses. The facility has detained political dissidents, journalists, academics, human rights activists, dual nationals, and foreign citizens, with documented torture methods including beatings, electric shocks, mock executions, prolonged solitary confinement, sleep deprivation, and sexual abuse. Often compared to the Bastille, Evin Prison has become a symbol of state repression in Iran, drawing repeated condemnation from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the UN. A deadly fire in October 2022 exposed the prison's chaotic conditions, while an Israeli airstrike struck the facility on 23 June 2025.

Movement

Pahlavi architecture

Built: 1963
Type: prison, architectural ensemble
Place: District 2, Iran

This building on

Architecturally similar

Location

35.79600, 51.38400