Referee and Student Among Hundreds Killed in Iran Protests

Referee and Student Among Hundreds Killed in Iran Protests

A referee and a student are among the hundreds reported killed during widespread anti-government protests in Iran. Coach Amir Mohammad Koohkan, 26, was shot on January 3 during protests in Neyriz, according to a friend. "Everyone knew him for his kindness," the friend stated, adding that Koohkan's family is mourning and "furious because he was killed by the current regime."

Five days after his death, student Rubina Aminian, 23, was shot in the back during a protest in Tehran, according to human rights groups. "She fought for what she knew was right," her uncle said. Nearly 500 protesters and 48 members of the security forces have been reported killed in the past two weeks, according to a U.S.-based human rights organization. Sources in Iran have indicated that the death toll is likely higher than what has been reported.

The protests began on December 28, centered around economic issues in the capital, Tehran, and have spread to 186 cities across all 31 provinces. They have become the largest demonstrations in recent years, with calls for the end of the Islamic Republic and the rule of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The protests have led to a government crackdown, with at least 10,600 people reported arrested and 496 protesters killed, according to HRANA.

Medical staff in Iran have described hospitals as overwhelmed with dead and injured patients. BBC Persian verified that 70 bodies were brought to Poursina Hospital in Rasht on January 9, and BBC counted 180 body bags in a morgue near Tehran, believed to have been filmed the same night. BBC and most other international news organizations cannot report from within Iran, and the Iranian government has imposed an internet shutdown since Thursday, making it very difficult to obtain and verify information.

Among the victims of the protests was Koohkan, who was killed in Neyriz, and his friend remarked, "It was way too soon for him, truly way too soon. He was so young." Koohkan, a futsal coach, was described as "someone who did not like to see people in this state of sorrow."

Meanwhile, Aminian, a Kurdish student, was shot while participating in a protest, according to three human rights groups. Iranian authorities initially refused to release her body to her family and later obstructed her burial and mourning ceremonies in her hometown.