The mother of a 16-year-old Iranian girl who became one of the faces of the unprecedented nationwide protests against the regime has reportedly been arrested.
Nasrin Shakarami, the grieving mother of Nika Shakarami, who was allegedly killed by the security forces in September 2022, had been outspoken in her criticism of the regime over the death of her daughter.
She had rejected official claims that Nika’s death was caused by falling from a building and insisted she was beaten to death by regime forces.
A wave of protests broke out across Iran in September 2022 after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, who was detained for allegedly wearing her headscarf incorrectly.
A video of Nika at a street protest, filmed days after Amini’s death, appeared to show her standing on top of a rubbish bin and setting fire to headscarves. Soon after, she reportedly went missing and her family found her body eight days later in a morgue. She was allegedly abducted, sexually assaulted and killed by the security forces.
This week Nika’s older sister, Aida Shakarami, announced in a social media post: “My mother was arrested this afternoon in Khorramabad [a city in western Iran]. I don’t know the reason for the arrest or what she has been charged with.”
Aida was arrested herself in April over mandatory hijab rules and released after a week in detention. On her release, she defied the hijab rules again, and shared a picture of herself without a headscarf.
Human rights activists say the Iranian authorities are punishing the families of protesters killed at the hands of the security forces for sharing posts in support of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement.
The family of Abolfazl Adinezadeh, 17, who was reportedly killed at a protest in 2022 after being shot repeatedly at close range by security forces, continues to face legal action. His sister and father were charged with “anti-government propaganda”, while his father, Ali Adinezadeh, was arrested in July and released after being detained for almost 50 days.
It comes at a time when executions are also at a record high. At least 570 prisoners have already been put to death this year, according to Iran Human Rights . Activists are making an urgent appeal to save Mohammad Reza Azizi, who is reportedly scheduled to be hanged on Monday.
Sara Hashash, of Amnesty International, said on Friday: “Using the death penalty against someone who was a child at the time of the crime is prohibited under international human rights and customary law, and violates Iran’s international obligations.”
