Iranian officials have been offering conflicting rationales for Iran's hasty exit from Syria as establishment voices begin to come to terms with one of the Islamic Republic's biggest ever strategic setbacks.
Defenders of official policy even went as far as slamming Iran's top great power ally Vladimir Putin for saying 4,000 Iranian troops needed a Russian airlift to depart.
"Liar," government-controlled media Nameh News branded the Russian President.
A senior military figure protested that those airlifted to Tehran were not Iranian or were not military personnel. Still others have defended Iran's support for and defense of Assad and at least one has denied Iran's military presence in Assad's Syria altogether.
Ali Akbar Ahmadian the Secretary of the Islamic Republic's Supreme Council of National Security insisted that Iranian troops were present only as military advisers.
The statement is contrary to copious Iranian state TV footage in the past that showed Iranian IRGC forces engaged in combat in Syria.
"Iran's military presence outside the country is based on Tehran's national interests, non-intervention in the internal affairs of the host countries," Ahmadian added. "Iran never starts an invasion."
Iranian and Russia forces participated in large-scale assaults and air strikes against population centers, including Syria’s second largest city, Aleppo during the civil war.
The conflict involved government forces opposed by religious and secular opposition fighters. Assad was ultimately toppled by a rebel coalition spearheaded by a radical Islamist group that was once an Al Qaeda affiliate.
Ahmadian made a rare concession about the true nature of Iran's erstwhile ally, however.
"Part of Assad's political system showed a detestable behavior against the people of that country and that brought about a divide between the Syrian government and people."
Ebrahim Rezaei the spokesperson for the Iranian parliament's National Security Committee told the press that "Assad's regime would have fallen much earlier if it were not for our resistance."
"Iran's presence in Syria was aimed at protecting the axis of resistance rather than Assad as an individual," he added."We fought terrorists such as ISIS and some of our men were killed in action in Syria."
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) General Esmail Kowsari, a member of the Iranian parliament's National Security Committee said Tehran did not station so many troops in Syria to have needed a massive Russian airlift.
"Iran never had 4,000 troops in Syria. Those who were evacuated were Lebanese and Afghan military advisers as well as individuals from some other countries."
Iran organized Afghan, Pakistani and Iraqi militiamen to fight alongside Assads forces for a decade.
The Afghan fighters receive citizenship or residency in Iran and were buried there with honors when they were killed in Syria.
"The reason we did not evacuate them earlier was that we expected the Syrian army to show some resistance. But neither the army nor Bashar Assad did so," Kowsari added. "We even told Iranian teachers in Syria to return to Iran via Lebanon."
Iran's clerical establishment also sought to blame Assad's forces.
Hashem Hosseini Bushehri the Friday Prayers Imam of Qom and a member of the Assembly of Experts also said in one of his sermons: "Neither Bashar nor the Syrian army had any motivation to fight, and Iran was not able to do anything under the circumstances as Syria's ground and air borders were closed."
Iran had warned Assad, he said, that fighters were being trained in Idlib but Tehran's counsels fell on deaf ears.
At Lakan prison in Rasht, political prisoners held in the Misaq Ward are in quarantine-like conditions and are isolated and poorly equipped to weather cold winter months.
The small yard, barely four square meters in size, is surrounded by tall concrete walls topped with metal mesh, offering little in the way of ventilation or natural light.
Inside, the metal beds are short and lack mattresses, forcing prisoners to either sleep hunched over or on the damp, cold cement floors.
With the arrival of winter, the situation has worsened, with inmates forced to use thin, inadequate blankets to shield themselves from low temperatures just above the freezing point.
Despite these efforts, illness—ranging from colds to more serious flu outbreaks—has become widespread, especially among prisoners with preexisting health conditions.
Some of the men in the section are middle-aged and suffer from chronic joint pain, yet they are compelled to wash with ice-cold water as the ward lacks hot water and functional heaters. Frequent power outages only exacerbate the problem, as the prison’s heating system does not have a backup power supply, leaving inmates without warmth day and night.
Prison regulations make matters worse. Clothing from families is only accepted twice a year, and the garments must meet strict standards, with hats, zippers and decorations banned.
With the onset of cold weather, the prison administration has shut down the office responsible for distributing warm clothing, declaring that it is now impossible to provide such items to the inmates.
Conditions in the women’s section of Lakan prison, where around 150 female prisoners are held, are similarly grim.
According to Forough Saminiya, a women’s rights activist and prisoner in Lakan, the women’s quarters are cramped, and the kitchen only contains a samovar, leaving prisoners with little means to feed adequately feed themselves.
The prison food is described as substandard and barely provides sufficient nutrition.
Saminiya also highlighted the exploitative nature of the prison shop, which has been monopolized by a single individual.
With over 150 regular customers, the shop charges exorbitant prices for essential goods. For those with specific dietary needs—such as Saminiya, who suffers from diabetes—the shop offers little to accommodate their conditions.
“Maintaining a proper diet in Lakan Prison is impossible,” she said, lamenting the lack of vegetables and the need to avoid starch.
Systemic Abuse in Qarchak prison
Across the country in Qarchak Prison near Tehran, the conditions for women and children have also become increasingly dire.
Jila Baniyaghoob, a journalist and women’s rights activist, reported that almost all of the prisoners have fallen ill with colds, and there is a shortage of medicine.
Sick prisoners are only given two antibiotic capsules, an inadequate remedy for the health issues. In addition, the prison’s medical facilities are under-resourced, with the number of available medical visits severely limited—only five prisoners per ward are allowed to see the doctor at a time.
Baniyaghoob also pointed out the water shortages in Qarchak, where drinking water has been cut off for several days. "Clean water has been cut off for several days. Each prison ward, with over a hundred prisoners, has only one tap of clean water, which is used for brushing teeth, washing dishes, and drinking," she said.
The heating system in the prison is unreliable, leaving inmates to endure near freezing temperatures, especially in the winter. Despite these conditions, prison authorities prevent families from providing extra clothing or necessary items for warmth.
Qarchak Prison, situated in a desert region, has long been described as a symbol of the systematic human rights violations within Iran's prison system.
In its report, the Iran Human Rights Organization recently condemned the facility as a “hell for women and children.” Originally a poultry farm, the prison has been converted into overcrowded wards that lack basic amenities, such as adequate ventilation, safe drinking water, and sufficient toilets.
Prisoners are forced to endure unsanitary conditions, with vermin including cockroaches, mice and even poisonous spiders inhabiting the cells.
The authorities’ failure to address these issues has prompted growing international concern.
Human rights organizations continue to call for accountability, urging the Iranian government to respect the basic rights of prisoners, particularly political detainees, who face disproportionate hardships in an already overburdened system.
