Fouad Albouftileh Nezhad is a 38-year-old journalist from Ahvaz, Khuzestan province, who has worked for several local newspapers and magazines in Ahvaz.

Albouftileh Nezhad was arrested for the first time in 2014 and subsequently spent four months in Evin Prison on charges of “disrupting national security.”

He was subjected to psychological torture during his time in Evin. After his release from prison, the torture he experienced while imprisoned caused Albouftileh Nezhad to suffer from post-traumatic stress problems such as nervous breakdowns and seizures, forcing him to take sedatives. 

Albouftileh Nezhad was arrested for the second time by security agents on August 14, 2020 in the Ramazan Alley area of ​​Ahvaz. He was then transferred to an unknown location.

The Ahwaz Human Rights Organization eported that Albouftileh Nezhad’s family had no information about the charges against him or where he was being held. His family were also concerned about his health as he was required to regularly take medication while in detention.

No further information has been released on Fouad Albouftileh Nezhad’s condition.

In recent years, many ethnically Arab citizens, journalists and activists in the province of Khuzestan have been arrested, convicted and given heavy sentences in connection with civil protests in the region.