Abdorrahman Boroumand Center

for Human Rights in Iran

https://www.iranrights.org
Omid, a memorial in defense of human rights in Iran
One Person’s Story

Erfan Zamani

About

Age: 24
Nationality: Iran
Religion: Presumed Muslim (Shi'a)
Civil Status: Single

Case

Date of Killing: November 3, 2022
Gravesite location is known: Yes
Location of Killing: Kashef Street, Lahijan, Gilan Province, Iran
Mode of Killing: at close range
Age at time of alleged offense: 24

About this Case

From an early age, he showed a strong work ethic and gained experience in a variety of trades, from carpentry to construction, while pursuing his university education.

Information regarding the arbitrary execution of Erfan Zamani, son of Somayeh Ebrahimpour, was obtained through contact between the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center (ABC) and an informed person on November 14, 2023. Additional details were gathered from sources such as IranWire (November 7, 2022), Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) (September-December, 2022), Sarkhat (November 12, 2022), and social media platforms, including Mohammad Hossein's Instagram account (which is no longer accessible).

According to available information, Erfan Zamani was a high school graduate and single. After his parents divorced, he moved from Tehran to Siahkal to live with his mother at the age of three.  From a young age, he was hardworking and experienced in various trades, from carpentry to construction, all while continuing his studies as a university student. He was also passionate about soccer and a devoted supporter of Perspolis.

On November 3, 2022, in the midst of the nationwide protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini - who had been detained by the morality police for allegedly wearing an "improper hijab" - Erfan joined the demonstrators on Kashef Sharqi Street in Lahijan's Sherbafan neighborhood in solidarity with the movement.

2022 (Mahsa Amini) Protest background

Nationwide protests were sparked by the death in custody of 22-year old Kurdish woman Jina (Mahsa) Amini on September 16, 2022. Amini had been arrested by the morality police in Tehran for improper veiling on September 13 and sent brain dead to the hospital. The news of her death triggered protests, which started with a widespread expression of outrage on social media and the gathering of a large crowd in front of the hospital,continued in the city of Saqqez (Kordestan Province), where Mahsa was buried. Popular exasperation over the morality patrols and the veil in general, aggravated by misleading statements of the authorities regarding the cause of Mahsa’s death and the impunity generally granted to state agents for the violence used against detainees led to months of nationwide protests. Initially led by young girls and women who burned their veils, and youth in general, protesters adopted the slogan “Women, Life, Freedom,” chanted during Amini’s burial. The protest rapidly took on a clear anti-regime tone, with protesters calling for an end to the Islamic Republic. 

The scope and duration of the protest was unprecedented. State efforts to withdraw the morality police from the streets and preventative arrests of journalists and political and civil society activists did not stop the protests. By the end of December 2022, protests had taken place in about 164 cities and towns, including localities that had never witnessed protests. Close to 150 universities, high schools, businesses, and groups including oil workers, merchants of the Tehran bazaar (among others), teachers, lawyers (at least 49 of whom had been arrested as of February 1st, 2023), artists, athletes, and even doctors joined these protests in various forms. Despite the violent crackdown and mass arrests, intense protests continued for weeks, at least through November 2022, with reports of sporadic activity continuing through the beginning of 2023.

The State’s crackdown was swift and accompanied by intermittent landline and cellular internet network shutdowns, as well as threats against and arrests of victims’ family members, factors which posed a serious challenge to monitoring protests and documenting casualties. The security forces used illegal, excessive, and lethal force with handguns, shotguns, and military assault rifles against protesters. They often targeted protesters’ heads and chests, shot them at close range, and in the back. Security forces have targeted faces with pellets, causing hundreds of protesters to lose their eyesight, and according to some reports women’s genitalia. The bloodiest crackdown took place on September 30th in Zahedan, Baluchestan Province, where a protest began at the end of the Friday sermon. The death toll is reported to be above 90 for that day. Security forces shot protesters outside and worshipers inside the Mosala prayer hall. Many injured protesters, fearing arrest, did not go to hospitals where security forces have reportedly arrested injured protesters before and after they were treated.

 By February 1, 2023, the Human Rights Activists News Agency reported the number of recorded protests to be 1,262. The death toll, including protesters and passersby, stood at 527, of whom 71 were children. The number of arrests (including of wounded protesters) was estimated at a minimum at 22,000 , of whom 766 had already been tried and convicted. More than 100 protesters were at risk of capital punishment, and four had been executed in December 2022 and January 2023 without minimum standards of due process. Authorities also claimed 70 casualties among state forces, though there are consistent reports from families of killed protesters indicating authorities have pressured them or offered them rewards to falsely register their loved ones as such. Protesters, human rights groups, and the media have reported cases of beatings, torture (including to coerce confessions), and sexual assaults. Detainees have no access to lawyers during interrogations and their confessions are used in courts as evidence.

Public support and international solidarity with protesters have also been unprecedented (the use of the hashtag #MahsaAmini in Farsi and English broke world records) and on November 24, 2022, the UN Human Rights Council adopted a resolution calling for the creation of a fact finding mission to “Thoroughly and independently investigate alleged human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran related to the protests that began on 16 September 2022, especially with respect to women and children.”

Mr. Erfan Zamani’s arbitrary execution

According to available information, On the evening of November 3, 2022, near Abdolrazagh High School on Kashef Sharqi Street, plainclothes officers shot him at close range with pellet bullets.

The bullets hit his back, injuring his side and kidneys. Witnesses later recalled that if he had been taken to a hospital sooner, he might have survived. Only after the officials left did locals manage to carry his wounded body into a pickup truck and rush him to the hospital, but it was too late. He succumbed to his injuries from severe bleeding.

On November 4, only immediate family members were allowed to attend the funeral, and Erfan was buried in the Boq'eh Barfjan cemetery in Siahkal. The people of Lahijan covered the site of his death with flowers in his memory.

Officials’ Reaction

The officers not only shot Erfan, but deliberately blocked any efforts to save his life. One witness said, "Shafa Hospital was not far away - his life could have been saved. But he was left to bleed on the pavement while officers stood over him, threatening anyone who tried to help." (IranWire)

Another witness described the harrowing moments: "I was driving around when I saw a crowd. I got out and saw someone lying on the ground, bleeding. Officers had surrounded him, preventing anyone from approaching. I yelled at them to stop, but they didn't care. When they saw he was dying, they left. That's when we ran to him and I realized - it was my own brother. My world collapsed. I collapsed and hit my own head with grief. But then the officers came back, pointed their guns at us, and forced us back. No matter how much I begged, no matter how much I cried, I was met with a gun in my face. They wouldn't let us save him, and they didn't offer any help themselves. It was only after they left that we were able to reach him." (Mohammad Hossein's Instagram account)

Outside the hospital, security forces fired paintball bullets into the growing crowd, injuring several people. Erfan's mother was also prevented from entering the hospital to see her son. (Instagram account of Mohammad Hossein)

According to hospital staff, "at around 11:30 p.m., the Lahijan prosecutor, accompanied by several officers, took the dead bodies of Erfan Zamani and a deceased Basij member from the morgue." (IranWire)

Before handing over the body, authorities forced the family to agree to a quiet burial. Even then, around 20 plainclothes officers stood guard at the cemetery, ensuring that only a handful of people were allowed to attend. The heavy security presence extended to the family's home. (IranWire)

On November 7, on the third day of Erfan's death, despite heavy rain, a large number of people traveled to Siahkal to pay their respects to Erfan Zamani. However, security forces responded with gunfire and tear gas, forcibly dispersing the mourners and preventing the ceremony from taking place. (IranWire)

Familys’ Reaction

There is no information available on the reaction of Erfan Zamani's family to his arbitrary execution. However, they have refrained from discussing the case publicly or bringing it to the attention of the media. (informed person) 

Impacts on Family

There is no information available on the impact of Erfan Zamani's arbitrary execution on his family.

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