Nika Shakarami. Twitter/@emilykschrader
New Delhi: Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Iran in a wave of protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman arrested by morality police for allegedly wearing her mandatory headscarf too loosely.
Meanwhile, security forces returned the body of another young woman to her family with suspicious injuries, nine days after she went missing during a protest in central Tehran.
On 20 September, 17-year-old Nika Shakarami took part in protests on Keshavarz Boulevard in Tehran. Her friends described her as fearless and chanted slogans nonstop.
According to The Telegraph, Nika Shakarami stated in her last phone call to a friend that she was fleeing security forces.
Her family searched all prisons, detention centres, police stations, and even Kahrizak’s forensics office for her. Finally, on 29 September, the Shakarami family was informed at the police station that someone with similar characteristics had been discovered in Kahrizak forensics.
According to media reports, authorities informed her family that she had fallen from a height. Her uncle, on the other hand, stated that the photos shown to them appeared unusual.
The Shakarami family was not allowed to see her head when they went to identify the body. Her nose had been smashed. Nika’s skull had been repeatedly pounded by a heavy object, possibly a baton.
The Shakarami family, like many others, has been threatened and told not to hold a memorial service for their slain daughter.
The protests in Iran have now spread to 164 cities in all 31 provinces. An estimated 15,000 protesters have been arrested and detained.
According to the Iran Human Rights Organization, at least 83 people have been killed in the crackdown. Amnesty International confirms 52 deaths, while Iran’s Fars news agency puts the death toll at “around 60.”
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