Alireza Khari, Detained Protester, Dies Following 'Increased Security Pressure'

Alireza Khari, one of the detainees from the nationwide protests of 2022 in Bandar Gaz, was buried following a 'suspicious death.' Based on images released from the obituary of this young protester, his funeral was held in the presence of security forces on Tuesday, March 20, in the village of Kouh Sahra, in the Bandar Gaz region of Golestan province. According to human rights sources, Alireza Khari committed suicide due to 'pressure from security institutions.' He had previously been summoned and interrogated multiple times by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). This protester was tortured after his arrest on charges of burning a photo of Ali Khamenei. According to the Campaign for the Defense of Political and Civil Prisoners, he was held for forty days in solitary confinement and approximately three months in Amirabad prison in Gorgan. This is not the first time a detained protester has died under suspicious circumstances shortly after being released from prison. Ashkan Baluch, Yalda Aghafazli, Arshia Imamgholizadeh, Maryam Arvin, Mohsen Jafari Rad, and Hasti Hosseinpanahi are among those who have died under suspicious circumstances after being released from prison. 'Mistreatment' in the prisons of the Islamic Republic and the deprivation of political prisoners from adequate medical facilities have repeatedly been criticized by the United Nations and human rights defenders. Reactions to the suspicious death of Ashkan Baluch after renewed summons: The Islamic Republic killed him. Ibrahim Firoozi, a Christian convert and former political prisoner, died 'of a heart attack.' Amnesty International: The death of Javad Rouhi is suspicious and a 'fact-finding committee' should be established. The 'suspicious' death of a former honorary police member in Abdanan after threats; officials: 'He had a heart attack.'