The 1988 massacre in Iran, look and be amazed.

But instead of securing his release papers from the facility located outside the capital, Tehran, Dashtbani's visit earned him a personal beating from a prison official known only as Hamid Abbasi.

When Dashtbani refused to comply with demands that he sign forms renouncing his affiliation with a Marxist organization and stating his commitment to Iran's Islamic regime, he said, Abbasi became enraged.

"He threw his arms around my neck and circled around, saying: 'Who said you should be released? You are a villain. I will kill you myself!'" Dashtbani recalled last month in testifying that he was left bloodied by his attacker.