LONDON: A British-Australian woman serving a 10-year jail term in Iran has been transferred to a notorious desert prison used to punish political prisoners, officials say.

Kylie Moore-Gilbert, a lecturer in Middle East politics at Melbourne University, was jailed in September 2018 for espionage. She was tried in secret and strongly denies all charges against her.

Moore-Gilbert had been held at Evin prison in Tehran before being transferred to the notorious Qarchak prison, located in the desert east of the capital. 

The Human Rights鈥� Activists News Agency (HRANA) said Qarchak has the worst reputation among all Iranian women鈥檚 prisons.

It is often used as punishment for Iranian political prisoners, and its conditions have been described as abysmal by former inmates.

鈥淨archak jail is where common prisoners are held. It鈥檚 overcrowded and some of them are dangerous,鈥� said Hadi Ghaemi, director of the Center for Human Rights in Iran.

Prior to her transfer, Moore-Gilbert had been in solitary confinement and on several hunger strikes.

She is said to have been beaten for trying to comfort new prisoners by passing notes and writing to them on prison walls.

She had also rejected an offer of freedom in return for spying on behalf of Iran. 鈥淚 am not a spy,鈥� she said in letters smuggled out of prison in January.

鈥淚 have never been a spy and I have no interest to work for a spying organization in any country.鈥�

Ghaemi said: 鈥淭hey鈥檙e not happy with her resilience and her refusal to cooperate.鈥�

Prevented from contacting her family, conditions in the desert prison are taking a heavy toll on the jailed academic鈥檚 mental health.

鈥淚 think I am in the midst of a serious psychological problem,鈥� she wrote in January, worsened by 鈥渢he ban on having any phone calls with my family.鈥�

Reza Khandan, husband of imprisoned human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, said in a Facebook post that Moore-Gilbert is in 鈥渁 very bad condition.鈥�

He wrote that she had told him: 鈥淚 can鈥檛 eat anything, I don鈥檛 know, I鈥檓 so disappointed. I鈥檓 so very depressed.鈥�

In a statement on Tuesday, Australia鈥檚 Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said: 鈥淒r Moore-Gilbert鈥檚 case is one of the Australian government鈥檚 highest priorities, including for our embassy officials in Tehran.鈥�

The Australian government has said it holds Iran responsible for Moore-Gilbert鈥檚 鈥渟afety and well-being,鈥� and is 鈥渦rgently seeking access鈥� to her.

Iran frequently imprisons foreign nationals on dubious grounds. British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been held in Evin prison since 2016 for 鈥減lotting to topple the Iranian government.鈥� She also vehemently denies these charges.