Died in detention and prison

This page keeps the memory of 251 people who lost their lives in a detention centre or prison: under torture, in a cell, or shortly after they came out of detention. Of these 251 people, 249 lost their lives in detention and 2 died after being released from detention. The earliest name in this list dates back to 31 Khordad 1388 and the latest to 20 Mordad 1405. These are people who were handed over alive to the agents and did not come back alive. In many of these cases, the official account of the cause of death differed from what the families saw on the bodies of their loved ones.

Years, places and ages

Death in detention appears in most years of this list, but the year 1401 with 106 names is the heaviest of all. It is followed by 1404 with 29 names, 1402 with 23 names, 1403 with 13 names and 1400 with 12 names. The days 23 Mehr 1401 with 7 names and 17 Mehr 1401 with 6 names are the heaviest days. Tehran with 26 names is the most frequent city, followed by Urmia with 21, Karaj with 12, Zahedan with 10, and Sanandaj and Mahabad with 8 names each. West Azerbaijan with 38 names is at the top of the provinces. The median age of the victims is 28 years; the youngest of them was 14 years old and the oldest 65. 11 people were under 18 years of age, children who died in detention, and there are also 17 women in this list.

Some lives

Aida Rostami, 36 years old, was a general practitioner. According to the source, she “during the Woman, Life, Freedom protests secretly treated the wounded in their homes.” She had volunteered to help the earthquake victims of Kermanshah and treated poor patients free of charge. Aida lost her life on 21 Azar 1401; her body was handed over with an injured face and a broken arm, and the family was given a letter that described the cause of death as an “accident.”

Arash Tolou Sheikhzadeh, 35 years old, was a barista in a café in Mashhad; the source calls him “an artistic young man” and “sensitive to social and political issues.” He was arrested at his home on 17 Bahman by the IRGC Intelligence and reached the hospital with a broken head, arms and legs. An account of his last days says: “When Arash was taken to the hospital, his level of consciousness was 2.5, but after three days in hospital his level of consciousness had reached 5, which is a sign of relative improvement; nevertheless they disconnected Arash from the machine and effectively killed him.”

Zakaria Rigi, 27 years old, a student of mathematics and physics and the prayer leader of the mosque of Zahedan Prison, according to the source “was sensitive to the rights of others and could not bear injustice being done to anyone.” The head of the prison's intelligence protection unit struck him on the head with an electric baton and threw him into solitary confinement while his head was bleeding. The next day, 28 Esfand 1390, his fellow prisoners informed the family that he had been killed. The prison officials first denied his death and then said that he had committed suicide. This sentence from those close to him remains: “He was not the kind to commit suicide!”

Alireza Kharbou, 20 years old, from Dizicheh, had just finished his military service and worked with a pickup truck; it had been a year since his marriage contract. The source says that “his mother, by baking bread,” had raised her children. On 18 Dey 1404 he was wounded by a bullet while helping a wounded person, and a week later his body reached the family with three bullets; the third bullet was in the face.

This list is not complete

The real number of people who lost their lives in detention and prison is higher. Many of these deaths remained hidden or their cause was never clarified, and we list only a name that has a source. The largest share of this page comes from the Iran Human Rights Society with 125 cases; followed by the Kurdistan Human Rights Network with 69, Persian Wikipedia with 67, iranhrs.org with 60 and Haalvsh with 49 cases. Everyone whose name appears here has at least one source, although the death of some appears in only one report. For 55 people a description of their life is available. If you knew one of the Javid-Nam (“everlasting names”), those who lost their lives, in detention, send us your memory or correction.