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The Evin Prison Strike: 71 Dead, and a Fake Uprising Online

Evidence rating: STRONG. The death toll is Iran's judiciary's figure, reported by France 24 and CNN; Amnesty International, a long-time critic of Evin, called for a war-crimes investigation; the online influence campaign was documented by the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab.

Evin prison in Tehran is where Iran's government holds political prisoners, journalists, dual nationals and foreigners. Human-rights groups have documented abuses there for decades. On June 23, 2025, one day after the American strikes and hours before the ceasefire, Israel bombed it.

What happened​

  • Iran's judiciary said at least 71 people died, including staff, conscript guards, prisoners and visiting relatives (France 24; CNN).
  • An analyst's log recorded more explosions at Evin and other Tehran sites at 01:10 GMT on June 24, after the ceasefire had been announced (S2 Underground).
  • Amnesty International, which has long documented torture and abuse at Evin, said the strikes must be "criminally investigated as war crimes" (Amnesty International, July 2025). No court has ruled.
  • Video of the aftermath was published by France 24 and Al Jazeera English (France 24 video; Al Jazeera English video).

The fake uprising​

Minutes after the bombs, social media filled with calls for Iranians to storm the prison. They were not what they seemed.

  • "Shortly after the explosions occurred at Evin Prison, a video surfaced on X and Telegram featuring the hashtag #freeevin. The content of the posts and videos seemed to lack authenticity. According to the researchers, these videos were part of an 'Israeli ruse'" (as summarized in the research captures).
  • In October 2025, "a Citizen Lab report found that after the Israeli strikes on Evin prison, a network of 50 fake accounts on X (Twitter) purporting to be Iranian residents near the prison had posted AI-generated and/or manipulated content that called for people to storm the prison in the aftermath of the strikes as part of an anti-government uprising" (same).

A bomb on a prison full of the regime's opponents, followed by fake accounts urging a jailbreak, points to the aim Israel's own ministers discussed in private: to strike "civilian national infrastructure that destabilizes the leader" (Defense Minister Katz, in leaked cabinet minutes, per Jamal Abdi; see The Leaked Israeli Deliberations). That is regime change, not nonproliferation. The same goal, according to former US counterterrorism chief Joe Kent, drove Israel's push for the second war (Joe Kent's Resignation).

Why Americans should know about it​

Evin held dual nationals and foreigners, including people Western governments had spent years trying to free. The strike came the day after the United States joined the war, while American bases were bracing for Iranian retaliation. Americans were told their country's part was a precise strike on three nuclear sites. Israel's war, which America had just joined, was also bombing a prison.

Status: Israel Katz and Jamal Abdi are alive, as far as these sources show.

Sources​

Last Updated: 2026-09-26

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