Poya Bakhtiari’s Grandmother: They Have Kidnapped My Son, Mehrdad
Poya Bakhtiari’s grandmother, one of those killed during the November 2019 protests, announced on Sunday the disappearance of her son, Mehrdad Bakhtiari.
Bibi Zahra Bakhtiari said in a brief video that Mehrdad Bakhtiari left home on Saturday evening to buy bread but did not return, and that he has been “kidnapped”.
This video has been circulated on social media, and Mrs. Bakhtiari addresses Islamic Republic officials in it, saying: “You killed my Poya. You kidnapped and took my Monucher four months ago. My Mehrdad went to get bread last night and hasn’t come back by morning… I cried all night. My eyes were on the door. Why are you kidnapping my child?”
Monucher Bakhtiari, Poya’s father, traveled to Kish Island in June of this year to protest the 25-year cooperation agreement between Iran and China and to seek justice for his son’s blood. He was arrested there and transferred to Bandar Abbas prison.
Previously, he had been detained for nearly a month without trial while insisting on holding a memorial service for the victims of November.
Bibi Zahra Bakhtiari continues in this video: “Islamic Republic, I have no enmity with you. Release my children so they can come. Now you have detained Monucher in Bandar Abbas. You kidnapped my Mehrdad from here and took him and I don’t know where he is. I wailed all night…”
Poya Bakhtiari, who was killed on November 15 in Mehrdabad, Karaj, as a result of a bullet wound to the head, has become one of the symbols of the November 2019 protests. He was only 27 years old when he died.
His father, in a petition submitted to United Nations officials, has called for the formation of an investigation committee into the “violent suppression of protesters.”
The November protests of last year, which initially began as a reaction to the sudden increase in gasoline prices, quickly changed direction and targeted the Islamic Republic government. However, these protests faced severe crackdown, resulting in hundreds of deaths.
Iran’s Interior Minister said that between 200 to 225 people were killed in these protests, but Amnesty International announced the details of 304 victims and emphasized that the number of those killed could be much higher than this figure.
Reuters news agency also reported the death toll at approximately 1,500 people.
Source: Radio Farda
