CNN
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Mourners gathering to commemorate the Fortieth day because the dying of Nika Shahkarami, an Iranian teenager who went lacking on September 20 after attending protests within the capital Tehran, had been met with gunfire and tear fuel by safety forces, in accordance with video posted on social media and geolocated by CNN.
Video confirmed obvious smoke from tear fuel close to a bridge the place mourners had gathered close to the village of Veysian. Obvious gunfire was audible in one other video clip shared on social media. It’s unclear if there have been any casualties.
The teenager’s maternal aunt, Atash Shahkarami, had posted a photograph on Instagram saying that the Fortieth-day commemoration can be held on Thursday at a cemetery in Lorestan province.
Video reveals mourners holding images of Shahkarami and chanting “Khamenei can be overthrown this bloody yr,” “We’re all Nika, come on struggle,” “Demise to the dictator,” and “Demise to Khamenei.”
When the 16-year-old went lacking, she was attending one of many protests that sprung up all through the nation in opposition to the dying of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian girl who died final month in state custody after being detained by the nation’s morality police.
On Thursday, CNN revealed an unique investigation into the ultimate hours of Shahkarami’s life.
Iranian authorities claimed Shahkarami’s physique was discovered in the back of a courtyard on the morning of September 21. Her mom wasn’t given entry to determine her till eight days later.
CCTV footage launched by the authorities timestamped simply after midnight as September 20 grew to become September 21 confirmed the determine of a masked particular person they stated was Shahkarami coming into a constructing that was uninhabited, and nonetheless underneath building in Tehran.
A Tehran prosecutor initially stated she died after being thrown from the constructing’s roof, and that her dying “had no connection to the protests” of that day, however regardless of apparently declaring her dying a murder, he didn’t say whether or not there have been suspects underneath investigation.
However dozens of movies and eyewitness accounts obtained solely by CNN point out that Shahkarami seems to have been chased and detained by Iranian safety forces that evening. One key eyewitness, Ladan, instructed CNN she noticed Shahkarami being taken into custody on the protest by “a number of large-bodied plainclothes safety officers” who bundled her right into a automobile.
On Wednesday, after CNN requested the federal government to touch upon the proof on this investigation, an Iranian media report quoted a Tehran prosecutor as saying that Shahkarami’s dying was a suicide. Iranian authorities nonetheless haven’t responded to CNN’s repeated inquiries about her dying.
The Thursday clampdown of mourners in Veysian comes after clashes broke out all through Iran as individuals tried to mark 40 days since Amini died, an necessary day of mourning in Iranian and Islamic custom.
On the identical day, a Shia holy shrine within the metropolis of Shiraz was attacked on Wednesday that left at the very least 15 individuals lifeless and greater than 40 injured, ISIS affiliated Amaq information company stated. ISIS has claimed accountability for the assault, however Iran’s leaders have conflated the assault with anti-government protesters.
On Thursday, Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei vowed to take motion in opposition to the attackers. “The perpetrator or perpetrators of this lugubrious crime will definitely be punished,” he stated.
Iranian army commanders additionally threatened anti-government protesters with additional crackdowns, after claiming they had been “complicit” in Wednesday’s assault, in accordance with statements revealed by the official state information company IRNA.
The commanders didn’t present proof for the declare.
Iran’s Armed Forces stated in a press release that the protests had been designed to create “insecurity and chaos” and added “this terrorist act can also be part of that design.”
International Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated that proof from the assault confirmed that “overseas meddlers” have “designed a multi-layer challenge” to weaken the nation.
“We will certainly not enable Iran’s nationwide safety and pursuits to be toyed with by terrorists and overseas meddlers who declare to defend human rights,” International Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian stated in a press release carried by the overseas ministry.