Nearly 50 days have passed since the beginning of the nationwide uprising of the Iranian people following the murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini by the government.
At least 54 Kurdish civilians, including seven minors, have been killed by the military-security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the provinces of West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Qazvin, Alborz and Tehran.
These statistics were collected until 6 November and were confirmed through interviews with the family members or relatives of the killed civilians.
In addition to the names and details of the 54 people that have been confirmed and recorded in this report, there are reports that indicate two other people were killed during public protests in the cities of Saqqez, Sanandaj and Tehran.
The Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) has not yet been able to confirm this information.
The Iran Human Rights also reported that 304 people had been killed in Iran as of 5 November.
According to this organisation, the highest number of killings took place in the provinces of Sistan and Baluchestan, Mazandaran, Tehran, Kurdistan, Gilan, West Azerbaijan, Kermanshah and Alborz respectively.
According to the Baluch Activists’ Campaign, the military-security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran killed at least 110 people in the cities of Sistan and Baluchestan alone.
Threats, arrests, secret burials, preventing public ceremonies
The security forces have pressured some of the families of those killed in the recent protests to announce the cause of death of their loved ones as illness, accident or suicide.
In some cases, they have even been asked to hold the Kurdish opposition parties responsible for the murder of their family members.
The security forces have tried to silence the families of the dead with various methods such as bribery, threats, pressure and arrest.
They have been making promises to pay a ransom and placing their child’s name in the Martyr’s Foundation, asking for huge sums of money to return the bodies of the dead, arresting family members, threatening to arrest other family children, pressuring them to do television interviews to state other reasons for the deaths, etc.
In some cases, in order to return the bodies of the deceased to the families, the security forces have forced them to give a commitment that the funeral ceremonies would not be held publicly and that they would not inform the media about the deaths of their loved ones.
Secret burial and determining the place of burial outside the city where the family lives have been other acts taken by the security forces for fear of escalating public protests should people attend the funeral ceremonies.
However, the families generally refused to accept the demands of the security forces and regardless of the threats and even the arrests made regarding the presence of their loved ones in the protests, they held the military-security forces of the Islamic Republic responsible for the deaths of their loved ones.
Violence against protesters; beating, using firearms and war weapons
Investigations and interviews with eyewitnesses carried out by the KHRN indicate that the military-security forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the police, IRGC’s paramilitary Basij forces, anti-riot forces and plainclothes, violently used war weapons, shotguns, batons, teargas, powerful water cannon trucks etc. to suppress the peaceful protests of the people in different cities and villages of Kurdistan.
In many cases, these forces attacked and destroyed the vehicles, houses and workplaces of civilians.
At least one person died as a result of a severe beating with a baton, one person as a result of torture after being detained in a detention facility, one person as a result of being run over by an anti-riot vehicle, and 50 people as a result of being hit by many shotgun pellets or war bullets.
Eyewitnesses say that some protesters were intentionally selected and shot at from close range.
KHRN’s statistics show that more than a thousand protesting civilians in the provinces of West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Kermanshah and Ilam were injured during public protests as a result of being beaten by officers or hit by bullets.
Also, at least eight protesters in the cities of Sanandaj, Saqqez, Orumiyeh and Bijar suffered irreparable injuries in the eye and lost the sight of one or both eyes as a result of the shootings by the anti-riot forces with shotguns.
Many of the injured refused to go to medical centres due to the lack of security and the risk of being arrested by the security agents and were forced to treat themselves with the limited facilities available at their homes.
Widespread arrests of civilians, activists, students; Threats, torture, forced confessions
Since the beginning of the nationwide uprising in various cities of Kurdistan and Iran, thousands of Kurdish civilians and activists have been arrested by security forces in the provinces of West Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Kermanshah, Ilam and other cities of Iran during street protests or at their homes or workplaces.
The arrest of these people was accompanied by violence. Some were injured at the time of their arrests and were transferred to security detention centres without medical treatment.
There are numerous reports of physical and mental torture of detainees and even their family members.
The security interrogators forced some detainees to make forced confessions through pressure, torture, and threats of arresting and raping their family members. They broadcasted these confessions on radio and television, government news agencies, and the internet.
Saman Yassin (Saman Seydi), a rapper from Kermanshah, who was arrested by the security forces on 2 October during popular protests in Tehran, was charged in court on 29 October with “enmity against God” (moharebeh) and “assembly and collusion with the intention of committing a crime against national security”.
This charge can eventually lead to a death sentence.
The accusation of “enmity against God” (moharebeh) and the publishing of forced confessions obtained from the Kurdish artist as a result of pressure and torture have caused concerns among his family, human rights organisations and public opinion in Kurdistan and Iran regarding his detention condition and the possibility of issuance of a death sentence for him.
Due to the extreme security conditions in Kurdistan and the pressure on the detainees and their families to prevent them from spreading the news of their arrests and providing information about their status, it was not possible to access the names and details of all the detainees.
However, KHRN has been reporting the names of the detainees on a daily basis in recent weeks and publishing this information on its website and official social media accounts.
The list below includes the names and details of 54 Kurdish people who lost their lives during the nationwide uprising of the Iranian people.
Also, the names and details of two other Kurdish civilians that the KHRN is still investigating to obtain reliable information about how they died or were killed are included at the end of the list.
- Fereydoun Mahmoudi, 33, who was from Saqqez and the father of two children, was shot and killed by anti-riot forces on 19 September during protests in the city.
- Reza Lotfi, who was from Dehgolan, was shot and killed by anti-riot forces on 19 September during protests in the city.
- Mohsen Mohammadi was from Divandarreh and was wounded by anti-riot forces on 19 September during protests in the city. He died the next day due to the severity of his injuries in Kowsar Hospital in Sanandaj.
- Foad Ghadimi, 39, was from Divandarreh and the father of two children. He was injured on 19 September during the popular protests in the city and died after being hospitalized for two days at Kowsar Hospital in Sanandaj.
- Minou Majidi, 63, was the mother of three children and came from Kermanshah. She was killed by anti-riot forces on Nobahar Street in this city on 20 September.
- Reza Shahparnia, 23, was from Kermanshah. He was shot at by anti-riot forces in Kermanshah on 20 September. Dozens of shotgun shots hit his body and a bullet hit his heart. After two days, his body was handed over to his family and was buried in Kermanshah.
- Farjad Darvishi, 23, was from the Balu village in Orumiyeh. He was shot and killed by anti-riot forces during a protest rally in the Valiasr neighbourhood of Orumiyeh on 20 September.
- Zakariya Khiyal was a 16 years old child from Piranshahr. He was killed by anti-riot forces on the streets of Piranshahr on 20 September.
- Samad Barginia, 52, was from Piranshahr. He was shot by Iranian armed forces during the recent public protests on 20 September. He died on 28 September due to the severity of his injuries at Khomeini Hospital in Orumiyeh.
- Danesh Rahnema, 25, was from the Balu village of Orumiyeh. He was killed by Basij forces on 21 September during the protests held in his village.
- Abdollah Mahmudpour, 16, was from the Balu village of Orumiyeh. He was killed by Basij forces on 21 September during the protests held in his village.
- Amin Marefat, 16, was from Oshnavieh. He was killed by anti-riot forces on 21 September during protests in this city.
- Milan Haghigi, 21, was from Oshnavieh. He was killed by anti-riot forces on 21 September during protests in this city.
- Sadraddin Litani, 27, was from Piranshahr. He was killed by anti-riot forces on 21 September during protests in this city.
- Mohsen Gheysari, 25, was from Ilam. He was killed by anti-riot forces on the Taleghani Street of Ilam on 21 September.
- Amir Ali Fouladi (Anushirvan) was from Eslamabad-e Gharb. He was killed by the armed forces near the governorate building of Eslamabad-e Gharb on 21 September.
- Saeid Mohammadi, 25, was from Eslamabad-e Gharb. He was killed by the armed forces near the governorate building of Eslamabad-e Gharb on 21 September.
- Iman Mohammadi, 22, was from Eslamabad-e Gharb. He was killed by the armed forces near the governorate building of Eslamabad-e Gharb on 21 September.
- Amir Hossein Basati, 16, was from Kermanshah. He was shot from a distance of a few meters and killed by anti-riot forces in Kermanshah on 21 September.
- Mohammad Zarei was a civilian from Sonqor in Kermanshah province and was a resident of Qarchak-e Varamin. He was shot dead by armed forces on 21 September during the protests held in the Bagherabad neighbourhood of Qarchak-e Varamin.
- Alireza Fathi, 22, was from Sonqor in Kermanshah province. He was killed by security forces on 21 September in Alvand industrial town in Qazvin.
- Rouzbeh Khademian, 32, was from Sonqor in Kermanshah province and a resident of Karaj. He was killed by security forces on 21 September during the protests held in Karaj.
- Abdolsalam Ghader Galvani, 32, was from Oshnavieh. He was shot by Iranian armed forces during the recent public protests on 21 September. He died on 26 September due to the severity of his injuries at Khomeini Hospital in Orumiyeh.
- Mokhtar Ahmadi was from Marivan. He was killed by Iranian armed forces on 1 October during the protests in this city.
- Nima Shafaghdoust, 16, was from Orumiyeh. He was severely injured by dozens of shotgun shots fired by anti-riot forces during the protests in the city. The body of this child was handed over to his family on 5 October at Khomeini Hospital in Orumiyeh.
- Peyman Menbari, 25, was from Sanandaj. He was shot and killed by plainclothes officers on 8 October during the protests in the city.
- Dariush Alizadeh was from Sanandaj. He was shot by the security forces during the protests on Sirous Street on 8 October.
- Mohammad Amini, 33, was from Sanandaj. He was shot by security forces from a close range during protests in the city on the night of 8 October.
- Yahya Rahimi, 31, was from Sanandaj. He was shot with a shotgun by plainclothes forces on 8 October over honking his car’s horn while he was driving on Taj Street.
- Arin Moridi was from Salas-e Babajani, Kermanshah province. He was wounded by security forces on 9 October during the protests in the city. He died the next day due to the severity of his injuries in a medical centre in Kermanshah.
- Sina Naderi, 23, was from Kermanshah. He was killed on 12 October during public protests in the Darreh Drezh neighbourhood of Kermanshah after being shot by IRGC agents and hit by two war bullets.
- Armin Sayadi, 18, was from Dalahu and a resident of Kermanshah. He was shot by IRGC forces on 12 October during popular protests in the Darreh Drezh neighbourhood (Mahdiyeh) while he was driving in a private car. Two other passengers in the car were shot and severely injured and were taken to the hospital.
- Aziz Moradi, from Sanandaj, was shot and killed by the military-security forces during popular protests in the city’s Naysar neighbourhood on 12 October.
- Kamal Feqhi, from Bukan, was shot by military-security forces while on the roof of his house during the popular protests in the city on 12 October. He passed away after being taken to the hospital due to the severity of his injuries.
- Ramin Karami, 31, was from Sarpol-e Zahab and a resident of Kermanshah. He was shot by the military-security forces on 12 October during popular protests in the city. His family was informed of his death eight days later.
- Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini, from Saqqez, was run over by an anti-riot vehicle on 12 October during the public protests in the Mehr-e Kouhdasht neighbourhood in Saqqez after he objected to the anti-riot forces destroying civilian vehicles. Eyewitnesses say that the anti-riot vehicle ran over his body for a second time to ensure that he was killed. Due to the pressure of the security agencies, his family stated that he had died in an accident.
- Ramin Fatehi, 49, was from Sanandaj. He was arrested by the security forces along with his brother Wrya Fatehi on 12 October. Rad Fatehi, his sister, was also arrested a day later. On 21 October, the office of the Ministry of Intelligence in Sanandaj summoned the family of Fatehi and informed them that he had committed suicide and lost his life in the detention centre of the ministry. The family and brother of Ramin Fatehi denied the intelligence ministry’s allegations, saying his brother was killed under torture. On the evening of 21 October, the body of the Kurdish civilian was secretly buried, without the presence of family members, in the Behesht-e Mohammadi cemetery in Sanandaj. Only one of his relatives was present to identify his body.
- Alireza Hosseini was from Kermanshah and a resident of Tehran. He was killed on the evening of 19 October in a raid by security forces on his home in Tehran. The house, which was the residence of a number of migrant workers in Tehran, was raided on the suspicion of their participation in the protests and with the intention of arresting these people.
- Afshin Asham, 28, was from Sorkhak-e Sanjabi village. He was killed by military-security forces on 26 October during popular protests in the city of Qasr-e Shirin.
- Sarina Saedi, 16, was from Sanandaj. She was severely injured by baton blows from the military-security forces during the evening protests in the city’s Naysar neighbourhood on 26 October. The child was taken to Towhid Hospital in Sanandaj the next morning but died a few hours later due to the severity of her injuries. Her body was buried in Behesht-e Mohammadi cemetery in Sanandaj in the presence of only several members of her family at 02:00 local time on 28 October. Although during a forced appearance due to the pressure and threat of the security institutions on the state media in the Kurdistan province Saedi’s father stated the cause of his daughter’s death to be excessive use of drugs, in the following days, the mother and other family members denied this claim and forced confessions.
- Mohammad Lotfollahi was a resident of Sanandaj. He was injured and arrested by the military-security forces during the popular protests on 26 October. While he was severely injured, IRGC forces took him to an undisclosed location in a van. On the morning of 27 October, the civilian was buried with the participation of some of his family members while the security forces were also present.
- Esmaeil (Simko) Mowloudi, 35, was from Mahabad. He was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Mahabad on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Kobra Sheikheh, 52, from Mahabad. She was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Mahabad on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Zanyar Aboubakri was a resident of Mahabad. He was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Mahabad on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Mohammad Shariati was from Sanandaj. He was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Sanandaj on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Shaho Khezri was a resident of Mahabad. He was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Mahabad on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Fereshteh Ahmadi, 32, was from Mahabad and a mother of two children. She was shot and killed by the military-security forces on 27 October during the protests in the city while she was on the roof of her house.
- Fereydoun Faraji, 28, was from Saqqez. He was shot and killed by military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in Saqqez on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Masoud Ahmadzadeh was a resident of Mahabad. He was injured by the shooting of military-security forces on 27 October during popular protests in the city. He died a day later due to the severity of his injuries.
- Motalleb Saeid Peyro, 40, was from Baneh. He was shot and killed by anti-riot and Basij forces on 27 October during popular protests in Baneh on the 40th day of the government’s murder of Zhina Mahsa Amini.
- Dastan Rasoul, 31, was a civilian from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. On 28 October, he was shot dead by IRGC forces on the border when he and another group of relatives of Motalleb Saeid Peyro were going from Iraqi Kurdistan to the Choman village in Baneh to participate in his funeral. Two other civilians from Iraqi Kurdistan were also injured as a result of the shooting.
- Komar Daroftadeh, 16, was from Piranshahr. He was shot dead by military-security forces on 29 October during public protests in Piranshahr.
- Momen Zand-Karimi, 18, was from Sanandaj. He was killed by military-security forces on 2 November during public protests held at the Golshan intersection of the city. He was shot from close range and from behind with a shotgun. The security agents forced his family to bury their son’s body at night in the village of Machekeh.
- Nasrin Ghaderi, who was from Marivan and a resident of Tehran, was killed with a baton during popular protests in Tehran. Ghaderi’s body was buried at night in Marivan under strict security measures on 5 November. Her father said, under the pressure of the security agencies, that the cause of his daughter’s death was a “fever seizure”.
People about whom the KHRN is still investigating to obtain reliable information about how they died or were killed:
- Reportedly, Esmaeil Dezvar, from Saqqez, was arrested on 28 September during the popular protests of the city and his body was taken to the city hospital on 10 October. The family of the Kurdish civilian, under the pressure of the security institutions, stated the cause of their child’s death was a “traffic accident”.
- Reportedly, Mohammad Keyvan Darvishi, 42, who was from Sanandaj, was killed on 26 October during the popular protests in the city’s Sharif Abad neighbourhood. Some sources said that he was shot dead and others say he was killed by baton blows.