Exclusive; Ferdin Jafari's Cousin: IRGC Officers Shot at Him; Ferdin's Father Filed a Complaint Against the IRGC

Pouria Golbaghian, the cousin of Ferdin Jafari, a Kurdish citizen with mental disabilities who was shot by "IRGC snipers" near the "Aichi Cemetery" in Saqqez on Saturday, says the IRGC has threatened Ferdin's family not to make the issue public. According to Mr. Golbaghian, Ferdin Jafari, a 28-year-old construction worker living in the village of Islamabad opposite Saqqez, was on his way to Saqqez to buy household items via the Baneh-Saqqez route when the IRGC officers ordered him to stop. Golbaghian told Manouchehr Pardel, a reporter for VOA, that Ferdin, fearing the large number of IRGC forces and their weapons, began to run towards his home, and the officers chased him while shooting. Ferdin's family heard the gunshots and came outside, witnessing him running while being chased by the IRGC officers. According to Mr. Golbaghian, a bullet hit Ferdin in the head, and he fell to the ground, after which his family immediately took him to the hospital. Golbaghian stated that after this incident, IRGC forces stormed Ferdin's family home and threatened them not to publicize the matter and to claim that it was the Kurdish Peshmerga parties who were responsible. He added that there is still a lot of traffic to Ferdin's family home. He mentioned that Ferdin's health condition is very critical, and his level of consciousness is low, and the bullet has not yet been removed from his head. According to Mr. Golbaghian, Ferdin's father has filed a complaint against the IRGC in the military prosecutor's office. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network had previously reported that Ferdin Jafari, a Kurdish citizen with mental disabilities who was shot by "IRGC snipers" near the "Aichi Cemetery" in Saqqez, is in critical condition. Additionally, reports indicate that due to the bullet hitting the left temporal region of his head, he has suffered a skull fracture and brain tissue damage and is currently in critical condition with a consciousness level of 3. The Hengaw Human Rights Organization also reported, citing "informed sources," that Ferdin Jafari is "mentally disabled and falls under the definition of persons with special needs." On the first anniversary of the killing of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini, Iranian government forces militarized the cities and arrested dozens of citizens across Iran. The United States and its allies, while commemorating the memory of Mahsa and all victims of four decades of repression by the Islamic Republic, have imposed a new round of sanctions against officials and institutions responsible for the repression of Iranian citizens.