From Surgery to Hengam-Zhal: Lives Disappearing at Iran’s Margins Under Bullets and Poverty

“Hakim Vahidi,” an Arab citizen from Jarrahi in Mahshahr, died after being shot by government forces, and simultaneously “Arvin Azizi,” a 20-year-old porter from Saqqez, was shot and wounded by border guards at the Hengam-Zhal border near Baneh. Two different cases highlight a shared reality: in Iran, many victims of armed forces’ gunfire find neither an opportunity to be heard nor do their deaths receive widespread coverage; particularly porters who, in deprived areas, resort to deadly work to make a living.

Hakim Vahidi, an Arab citizen from the city of Jarrahi (Chamran), a suburb of Mahshahr, was shot by government forces on Wednesday and subsequently died in one of the medical centers in the city.

According to human rights organizations’ reports, Vahidi died on Thursday, the 26th of Shahrivar, due to the severity of injuries caused by a gunshot wound. According to the news channel “Moj,” the day before, he was pursued by government forces, and a government official named “Iman Shirafi” from Ramshir opened fire on him.

Despite this citizen’s death, as of the publication of this report, the judicial and security authorities of the Islamic Republic have provided no explanation regarding the reason for the pursuit and shooting.

This silence is one of the concerning aspects of such cases: a citizen loses his life, but the public does not necessarily know why he was pursued, what exactly happened at the scene, and whether the use of firearms by government forces had legal necessity or not.

On the other side, just days before Hakim Vahidi’s death, Arvin Azizi, a 20-year-old porter from Ghore-Darre village, a suburb of Saqqez, was shot at by border guards in the Hengam-Zhal border area near Baneh.

According to Hengaw’s report, this incident occurred on Monday, the 23rd of Shahrivar. According to informed sources, a bullet from a Kalashnikov rifle struck the porter’s abdomen, and after being wounded, he was transferred to a hospital for medical treatment.

Arvin is only 20 years old; an age that for many young people could mark the beginning of studies, professional work, or building an independent future, but in deprived border areas with very weak economic conditions, young people are sometimes driven toward occupations accompanied by the risk of death and permanent injury.

Porter work cannot be viewed merely as a dangerous profession in border areas. Behind many of these exhausting journeys lies a deeper issue: poverty, unemployment, and the lack of stable job opportunities in border regions.

Porters transport heavy loads across mountainous and difficult paths, and in addition to the risk of falling from heights, mine explosions, frostbite, and natural disasters, they face the danger of being shot by military forces.

In recent years, multiple cases of young porters being killed or wounded in the border areas of Kurdistan have been reported. In some cases, the victims have been teenagers. Human rights reports show that shooting by border forces is one of the recurring factors in porter deaths and injuries. For example, reports published about the Hengam-Zhal border in recent years have documented multiple cases of shooting at porters.

In such circumstances, the fundamental question is: why should a 20-year-old young man risk his life on border routes to earn meager income?

The answer must be sought in a set of economic and social problems; problems that are felt more acutely in deprived border regions and limit formal and stable job opportunities.

Porter work is not a preferred and safe choice for many border region families; rather, when economic opportunities are limited, it can become the last resort for meeting living expenses.

The image of a 20-year-old young man crossing mountainous paths with a heavy backpack and then being targeted by a military bullet is not merely a border incident. This image is part of a social reality in which poverty and lack of opportunity drive a person toward work where each journey into the path could be his last.

From this perspective, the porter issue is not just a border security matter; it is also a matter of human dignity, the right to decent work, and the right to a safe and humane life.

If the government is combating organized smuggling, this should not mean armed and opaque treatment of individuals who have resorted to porter work to make a living. There is a serious difference between organized smuggling networks and an unemployed young man carrying goods to survive, and border policies should take this distinction into account.

The cases of Hakim Vahidi and Arvin Azizi also reveal a larger issue: many victims of violence in Iran’s deprived areas fundamentally do not get a chance to be seen.

In Tehran or major cities, a citizen’s death may turn into widespread news; but in border and deprived areas, many incidents are only recorded in brief reports by human rights organizations or local media, disappearing from the news cycle within days.

This issue is more acute regarding porters. Many of them have no recognized name or social standing, and their families also lack the means to pursue media or legal follow-up on their cases.

For this reason, a person may be shot at, wounded, or killed in the mountains, but his name is only recorded in a brief report and then forgotten.

Death should not be considered less important because of a person’s poverty, place of residence, or occupation. Regarding Hakim Vahidi, official authorities have yet to provide any explanation for the reason of pursuit and shooting. Regarding Arvin Azizi, published reports indicate direct shooting by border guards.

In such cases, the fundamental principle should be conducting independent and transparent investigations: why was the shooting carried out? Was there a threat to the lives of armed forces? What orders or regulations formed the basis for using force, and did the use of lethal force have necessity and proportionality?

Answers to these questions should not be limited to the account of government forces alone. The families of victims also have the right to know how their loved ones were killed or wounded and who was responsible for the incident.

Hakim Vahidi and Arvin Azizi come from two different regions and have two different fates; one has lost his life and the other is hospitalized after being shot. But both cases carry a shared warning: the lives of citizens in Iran’s deprived areas should not be considered less valuable than the lives of other citizens.

Regarding porters, this is a dual responsibility; on one hand, unnecessary and disproportionate use of lethal force against them must be investigated and stopped, and on the other hand, the government must take seriously the economic roots of the porter phenomenon.

A young man forced to carry a heavy load through mountains to feed his family’s stomach is, before being “a porter,” a human being with the right to life, dignity, and a future.

In a society where freedom and human dignity are respected, poverty, ethnicity, or place of residence should not cause a person’s death to pass silently by public awareness. The names of Hakim Vahidi and Arvin Azizi are reminders of dozens, perhaps hundreds of cases that may never receive adequate attention; human beings who deserve not only to survive but to live a dignified life.