The family of a young Iranian protester shared their harrowing experience of searching through multiple corpses to find her body. Robina Aminian, a 23-year-old fashion student in Tehran, was tragically killed on January 8 during the government’s crackdown on demonstrations. Her family suspects she was fatally shot by security forces.
Upon learning of Robina’s death, her mother traveled to Tehran from Kermanshah and had to navigate a crowded mortuary to locate her daughter. Facing demands for bribes to release bodies, the family quickly retrieved Robina’s body to avoid potential obstacles from guards.
Robina’s uncle, speaking from Oslo, described how they had to take bold actions to secure her body, eventually burying her in an unmarked grave near their home in Kermanshah. Reports from the Centre for Human Rights in Iran revealed a disturbing trend of authorities extorting money from families to return protesters’ bodies, aiming to silence dissent.
Amid conflicting claims by Iranian state television insisting on free mortuary services, activists estimate over 3,090 deaths during the protests, which initially stemmed from economic grievances but evolved into a broader movement against the longstanding authoritarian regime. Robina’s family emphasized her non-political stance and her participation in a peaceful protest that turned deadly.
Expressing sorrow over the stolen future of their loved one, Robina’s relatives remain out of contact with family members in Iran. The tragic incident underscores the ongoing turmoil and repression faced by protesters in Iran.