Saeed Masouri, Iran’s longest-held prisoner… “The journey to reclaim our people’s stolen freedoms”

Ali Safavi
@amsafavi
Saeed Masouri, enduring as Iran’s longest-held prisoner of conscience, marks a poignant milestone: the start of his 24th year of incarceration. From the depths of confinement, he shares a message that resonates with profound strength, courage, and inspiration:

“O beloved, today we embody both you and our paramours. Beyond layers of walls, interwoven with barbed wire, lies a solitary cell — its confines nearly touching, pierced only by a slit masquerading as a window. Here, I mark the inception of my twenty-fourth year in captivity.

“Like Mary’s child burdened with his cross, I too have shouldered the oppressive weight of these dense walls and iron bars for two dozen years. Each moment in this stifling cell has been a testament to endurance, and through it all, I’ve whispered to myself:

“The moon, aglow with sweetness, has mastered the rhythm of waves and the breadth of the sea. In this vastness, the fish dance, and the mighty storm reigns.

“But the twenty-third year stood apart — a year steeped in blood, possibly the most harrowing of all these two-plus decades. I still feel the lingering warmth and whispers of dear ones like political prisoners Mohsen Shekhari, Mohammad Mahdi Karmi, Seyed Hossein Hosseini, and others. Their spirits, taken to the grim halls of Qezel Hassar, seem to echo around me.

“It’s as though their cries penetrate these walls, a haunting reminder of the many still queuing for the same fate — individuals like Khosrow Basharat and Anwar Khezri.

“This relentless tragedy, it appears, is fueled by the insatiable desires of the merciless — a leadership (Khamenei) that feeds on the vitality of our youth, under the guise of a deity of crime and slaughter, not one of compassion and mercy. The words of this regime, spoken through its Supreme Leader, continue to unleash waves of unjust suffering.

“In the solitary confines of a prison, humanity faces its gravest test. When an executioner leads a fellow inmate away, bound in chains for solitary confinement, their final, despairing gaze lingers with us. In those moments, the collective heart of our humanity is executed alongside them. Throughout this year, I have lived through these executions, each moment a fragment of shared suffering. Yet, how long can this endure? How much farther must we tread this path of agony?

“The journey to reclaim our people’s stolen freedoms is a path drenched in blood, a costly toll we pay at every turn, ready to sacrifice even more. Perhaps this is the destiny of those who yearn for liberty, the inescapable fate of Iran and its lovers of freedom.
“To all the free spirits and those who cherish Iran, I say:

“O lovers, O lovers, today we are one with you,
Drenched in a sea that’s both cruel and true.
Fear cannot sway us from this bloody tide;
For in the vastness of love’s grandeur, we’ll find our stride.
Amidst this crimson sea, towards freedom, justice, and equality, we will tirelessly swim.”

Political prisoner Saeed Masouri.

Your unwavering spirit in the toughest of times is a beacon of hope and strength. More power to you brother!🌹