Gohardasht Prison is one of the most notorious prisons in Iran. It gained infamy in the 1980s due to the mass executions of political prisoners, particularly during the 1988 massacre. The prison, covering approximately 200,000 square meters, is located in the northeast of Gohardasht city. It is bordered by Gohardasht to the south and west and extends to the foothills of the Alborz Mountains to the north and east.
A museum has been established in Ashraf 3, where replicas of sections of Gohardasht Prison, including the ‘Death Corridor’ and the ‘Execution Site,’ have been reconstructed.
These reconstructions, created with highly detailed models and simulations, allow visitors to experience the harsh and inhumane conditions that prevailed in this prison.
One of the notable models was presented during the trial of Hamid Nouri, a deputy prosecutor at Gohardasht Prison during the 1988 massacre, in Sweden. In this trial, lawyer Kenneth Lewis brought a model of Gohardasht Prison to the court to provide a tangible depiction of prison conditions and the treatment of prisoners. This model was meticulously reconstructed based on the testimonies and accounts of survivors of the 1988 massacre.
Structure of Gohardasht Prison
The prison is primarily composed of solitary confinement cells and consists of 24 wards across 8 three-story blocks. Between each block, there is a yard designated for prisoners’ outdoor time. Each ward contains 40 solitary cells, with the last two cells serving as bathrooms.
Three of the 24 wards are general wards where every two solitary cells have been combined into one, with wooden doors added. These three wards are located on the third floor of the three southern blocks. This means that the remaining 21 wards in the prison consist entirely of solitary confinement cells.
Beyond the wards, the prison has three additional blocks:
The eastern block is entirely used for the kitchen and supply storage.
The western block houses the prison infirmary.
The block adjacent to the infirmary contains the visitation hall and administrative offices.
The visitation hall is located on the middle floor of this block, while the prison warden’s office, prosecutor’s office, archives, and other administrative rooms are on the first floor. Part of the third floor contains the visitation monitoring room, where conversations between prisoners and their visitors were constantly monitored and recorded.
Execution Hall and the 1988 Massacre
In the northern section of the prison’s main corridor, there is a large amphitheater that the clerical regime refers to as a Hosseiniyah (religious hall). However, in reality, this hall was used as the execution site for Mojahedin prisoners during the 1988 massacre.
During the 1988 executions, thousands of PMOI and resistance prisoners were hanged in Gohardasht Prison. In addition to prisoners who were already serving sentences there, exiled PMOI prisoners from the cities of Mashhad and Kermanshah were also executed in this prison.