Doctor's Day Ceremony in Iran Held in Absence of Doctors Killed in Protests

As Iran commemorates Doctor's Day, human rights sources have recalled the doctors killed during last year's nationwide protests. The 'Dadban' website published images on Thursday, September 2, of Masoud Ahmadzadeh, a dentist, and Azad Hosseinpour, a physician, who were shot dead by security forces in Mahabad last November. Parisa Bahmani, a general surgeon and one of the protesters in front of the Tehran Medical System building, Aida Rostami, a doctor aiding injured protesters, Ebrahim Rigi, a doctor treating the wounded during the bloody Friday in Zahedan, and Ailar Haghi, a medical student in Tabriz, are among the doctors and medical students who lost their lives last year. Iranian government officials, who have not taken responsibility for the deaths of protesters, attributed Parisa Bahmani's death to an 'accident' and claimed Aida Rostami died from 'being thrown from a pedestrian bridge.' However, human rights activists have stated that Bahmani was killed by security forces' gunfire in front of the Tehran Medical System building. Aida Rostami's family also reported seeing signs of torture on her body, including the removal of one of her eyes. Ebrahim Rigi, a detainee from the protests in Zahedan, was also killed last March after being re-arrested by police. Ailar Haghi, a 23-year-old medical student at Tabriz University, was killed last November amid the nationwide protests. The Committee for Following the Status of Detainees published the names of over 80 imprisoned doctors and medical students during the protests last fall. The Iran Human Rights Campaign also reported last winter on the security pressures on doctors and medical staff, including arrests, torture, and threats against them. During the peak of the protests, the New York Times reported on the use of ambulances as tools of repression by the security forces of the Islamic Republic during the recent nationwide protests. The newspaper, which spoke with several protesters in Iran, analyzed and located videos and photos from at least six points in Iran regarding this issue. One resident of Tehran reported to the New York Times that they saw at least three protesters being pushed into an ambulance during a student demonstration. Another eyewitness stated that many ordinary individuals, such as young girls, were seen being transported through the city in an ambulance with its lights off. The misuse of ambulances in this manner violates international medical neutrality laws. Meanwhile, amid a physician shortage crisis in Iran, statistics indicate that up to 10,000 doctors emigrate from the country annually. Behnam Abasian, a member of the Supreme Medical Council, recently warned about the shortage of doctors and dentists, stating that in the near future, 'Afghan and Pakistani doctors' will need to come and work in Iran. Bahram Einollahi, the Minister of Health, in his message on Doctor's Day, which is set for September 1, acknowledged the efforts of doctors during the years of war and the COVID-19 pandemic without addressing the issues facing the medical community in Iran. The ongoing physician shortage crisis in Iran; Raisi tells emigrant doctors: there is an opportunity for 'dignified work.' A health ministry official stated the value of each surgeon is $10 million; we are training doctors for foreigners. The suicide of '13 residents' in one year; a union official: our hope for the future has diminished! Despite warnings, the emigration of doctors continues, and media criticism of officials' 'decisions' remains unchanged.