Protester wounded in Iran’s 2009 unrest passes away

GVF — Nearly four years after Iran’s widely disputed 2009 presidential race, the post-election clampdowns continue to claim the lives of protesters who took to the streets demanding a recount of the votes.

On Wednesday, Kaleme, a site close to opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, reported that 26-year-old Hassan Mirzakhan, who had sustained serious spinal cord injuries during opposition protests in Tehran’s Vanak Square on 16 June 2009, has passed away.

Mirzakhan was reportedly shot in the back as he marched peacefully along with other protesters to demand their votes back.

After four years of grappling with his severe wounds, Mirzakhan passed away on Monday 8th of April. He was laid to rest in Tehran’s Beshte Zahra cemetery. A memorial service was held in his honour in the Nour mosque in Fatemi Square on Thursday.

Mirzakhan’s death has been reported by state-run news outlets. Authorities have attempted to present him as a government supporter and a victim of the 2009 “sedition”.

“Sedition,” is the Iranian regime’s epithet for the opposition Green Movement.

Almost fifty days ago, Parvin Fahimi, the outspoken mother of another 2009 protester Sohrab Arabi, described Hassan Mirzakhan as one of the victims of the crackdowns who had been under state-pressure in recent years. She also named Omid Azizi, Behzad Yazdanpanah and Vahid Irani-Moghaddam as other protesters wounded four years ago.