Imagine the unbearable pain of learning your loved one has been killed, not in an accident or by illness, but by a regime silencing dissent. That's the stark reality for countless families in Iran right now. This is a tragedy unfolding in real-time, and the world needs to understand the heartbreaking stories behind the headlines.
Over the past week, as anti-government protests have swept across Iran, families are grappling with the devastating news of their relatives' deaths. The Human Rights Activists News Agency, based in the US, estimates that over 2,500 people have already been killed. But here's where it gets controversial... some sources believe this number is a gross underestimate, due to the regime's tight control over information. The true toll could be far higher, and the lack of transparency only deepens the anguish of those left behind.
Iran has a large diaspora, with many people having fled the country after the 1979 revolution. At least half a million Iranians reside in Europe. The government's imposition of a communications blackout since January 8th has made it incredibly difficult for these overseas relatives to learn about the fate of their loved ones. Imagine the agonizing wait, the unanswered calls, the desperate search for information.
Hali Norei, 40, experienced this nightmare firsthand. She recounts collapsing upon receiving the news that her 23-year-old niece, Robina Aminian, was fatally shot in the head after joining a protest in Tehran. What makes this even more gut-wrenching is that the news only reached her after relatives in Iran traveled to the Iraqi border, seeking a stable internet connection to make the call.
"It’s a tragedy for my family," Norei said, her voice filled with grief. "I don’t know what I can do for them, but I want to be Robina’s voice and don’t want this regime to silence the voices of our children.”
Norei shared the harrowing details of her family's ordeal in Tehran. They traveled to identify Aminian's body and were confronted with the sight of "hundreds of bodies of young people shot and killed." Adding insult to injury, authorities initially refused to release Aminian's body, forcing the family to take it secretly.
"Amene [Aminian’s mother], who is one of the bravest members of our family, wailed loudly, but was determined to bring her baby home," Norei recounted. "She picked her up in her arms and was forced to steal her own child’s body; she drove back home with her on her lap.”
But the nightmare didn't end there. Security forces followed Aminian's family home and remained stationed outside their house. The family was then denied a funeral ceremony at several mosques, and they were ultimately "forced to bury her along the road, digging the ground themselves to bury their child,” Norei said.
Norei's husband, Nezar Minoei, painted a vivid picture of Robina: “Our Robina was full of energy and dreams. She was full of love…She wanted to travel to Milan and pursue a master’s in fashion design. She wanted to bring her culture to the world in a unique way – like, Persian, Kurdish, Baluchi designs. I always told my wife: ‘Robina will be very famous.’”
Several Iranians living abroad have shared similar stories, expressing their constant worry about family and friends back home. Sara Rasuli, 39, who fled Iran after the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom protests and is now a refugee in Germany, learned that her cousin, Ebrahim Yousefi, a 42-year-old Kurdish father of three, was killed. He was shot by security forces.
Hours before attending the protest, Yousefi had poignantly posted on social media: ‘We ourselves never had any luck, nor did our children … We grew up with war and hunger, our children with sanctions, power cuts, water shortage, and pollution … God, in the end, what will become of our children.’ And this is the part most people miss... it wasn't just about political freedom, it was about basic survival, the ability to provide for one's family.
Rasuli received the news of his death after her relatives traveled to the Iraqi border to get internet access. "My cousin went out to fight for freedom and the rights of their people. He was kind and just the nicest person you would meet. The economy has worsened so much that even buying meat has become a luxury,” Rasuli explained. She also reported that another cousin had been wounded and another arrested.
"The last I know is that two of my relatives went to retrieve Yousefi’s body. Not only were they denied [the corpse], they were both arrested as well. We don’t have an update on anything else that’s happening to my family members due to the blackout.”
Rasuli pleaded, "The whole world needs to know what’s happening to the children of Iran, especially the Kurds [a sizeable ethnic minority in western Iran]."
Akbar Sarbaz, 36, an Iranian living in Canada and a world champion bodybuilder, was devastated to learn that his idol, coach, and friend of more than 15 years, Mahdi (Masoud) Zatparvar, had been killed at a protest.
Zatparvar, a two-time bodybuilding champion and coach, had also shared a powerful message on Instagram hours before his death: “I just want my rights. A voice that has been silenced in me for over 40 years must scream...You took away our youth, hopes, dreams,” he wrote. “I am here so that tomorrow I won’t look at myself in the mirror and say that I had no vein, no honour … I will pay anything for it.”
"Just hours before he was killed," Sarbaz said, "he asked me to share this Instagram post and be the voice of the protesting people of Iran. He was fearless and the kindest...He wanted to fight for the rights and freedom of our compatriots and despite the crackdown, he joined the others on the streets. He was the bravest.”
Sarbaz added, “We had some wonderful memories together and my favourite one is the moment he placed the gold medal around my neck. I can’t believe it and don’t want to believe he’s gone.”
Siavash Shirzad, a 38-year-old father of one, was urged by his family not to join the protests, but he did anyway. His cousin learned that Shirzad joined a group of protesters who were dancing to Kurdish songs when security forces opened fire.
Shirzad was initially taken to al-Ghadir hospital, but due to the overwhelming number of wounded protesters, he was transferred to Rasoul Akram hospital. Hospital staff contacted his family at 4 a.m. on January 9th, saying, “Your son is alive, please come.” But by the time they arrived, he had died.
Shirzad's body was among hundreds at the Kahrizak forensic medicine centre in Tehran. His cousin was told that all the bodies were numbered, and Shirzad’s number was 12,647. “My family was forced to pay a large sum of money just to be shown his body in the morgue,” he said.
The family was then threatened and refused permission to take the body for burial unless they kept the ceremony private: “Otherwise, we will bury him ourselves, in a place where there are 12,000 mass graves. Then he will disappear among the bodies, and you will never find him.” They were followed by military vehicles and warned, “If even a single slogan is shouted, we will take the body back.”
These are just a few of the countless stories emerging from Iran. They paint a picture of immense suffering, resilience, and a desperate yearning for freedom. But here's where it gets controversial... some argue that outside intervention could make the situation even worse, while others believe that the international community has a moral obligation to act. What do you think? Should the world be doing more to support the people of Iran? And what role should social media play in amplifying these voices and holding the regime accountable? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
