The Hana Human Rights Organization, within the framework of its mandate to document human rights violations, announces the confirmed identification of 21 women and girls who were killed by direct gunfire during the recent protests in Kurdistan and other parts of Iran. This report is based on field verification, examination of available documents and evidence, and the collection and cross-checking of witness testimonies. From a legal perspective, it is admissible as part of the documentation concerning violations of the right to life.
According to Hana’s findings, five of the victims were under the age of 18: Melina Asadi (3 years old, Kermanshah), Sana Tousangi (12 years old, Kermanshah), Nazanin Zahra Salehi (13 years old, Kermanshah), Asra Tavousinia (14 years old, Sonqor), and Melika Shahmoradi (16 years old, Kermanshah). In addition, two victims were 18 years old: Mohana Dokoushkani (18 years old, Kermanshah) and Nazanin Zahra Esmikhani (18 years old, Qazvin). Hana emphasizes that the killing of a 3-year-old child as a result of direct gunfire, from the perspective of international human rights law, underscores the severity and unjustifiable consequences of the use of force and the urgent need for an independent and effective investigation.
The names of the other identified victims are as follows: Golaleh Mahmoudi Azar (Mahabad), Zahra Moradi (Bukan), Zahra Bani-Amerian (Sonqor), Mahsa Dezfoulian (Kermanshah), Tayebeh Rezaei (Kermanshah), Elham Zeynali (Kermanshah), Parvin Azizi (Sarpol-e Zahab), Rezvan Abdi (Divandareh), Sofia Abbasi (Kuhdasht), Shahla Kakaei (Javanrud), Leila Shokri (Hamedan), Shilan Salehi (Baneh), Fatemeh Soltani (Esfarayen), and Robina Aminian (Marivan).
In light of the nature of the victims and the patterns observed in documented cases, the Hana Human Rights Organization stresses the necessity of conducting urgent, independent, impartial, and effective investigations into the use of live ammunition against protesters, including women and children. Hana calls on international bodies, particularly the UN Human Rights Council’s Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, to take these findings into account in their assessments and to pursue accountability for those who ordered and carried out systematic violations of the right to life during the protests.