Street Vendor Self-Immolates in Khorramabad; Governor: Officers Warned But He ‘Resisted’
A street vendor protesting the actions of municipal officials enforcing street vending restrictions attempted self-immolation, but bystanders at the scene extinguished the fire and transferred him to a hospital.
According to reports, on Wednesday evening, 13 Bahman, a street vendor set himself on fire after municipal officials enforcing street vending restrictions in Khorramabad cleared his stall. The man was reportedly transferred to a hospital after people extinguished the flames.
According to Mehr News Agency, Ali Mehrzad Safdari, head of Lorestan’s Pre-Hospital Emergency Center, while confirming the self-immolation of the street vendor, said he was unaware of the circumstances and described his condition as “good.”
Jafar Toulaabi, the governor of Khorramabad, also confirmed the street vendor’s self-immolation in a conversation with Tasnim News Agency, but stated that municipal enforcement officers extinguished the fire and transferred him to the hospital.
The Khorramabad governor claimed that following a warning from municipal officials, street vendors in Imam Hossein Square cleared their stalls, “but the individual in question resisted the municipal forces and attempted self-immolation.”
Stating that they had requested that “given the economic situation,” municipal officials treat street vendors with respect, he said that officers at the scene “claim that no physical confrontation occurred.”
Six years ago, Younes Asakereh, a street vendor from Khormoshahr, attempted self-immolation in a similar protest and lost his life. Since then, several cases of street vendors’ self-immolation have been reported.
Source: Voice of America
