Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran: The Islamic Republic is responsible for the death of Bahareh Lalehi

The Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran (IFMA) issued a statement following the news of the death of Bahareh Lalehi, a director and screenwriter, stating: "The serial killings of filmmakers, which began with the suicide of Kiumars Pourahmad and continued with the brutal murder of Dariush Mehrjui and Vahideh Mohammadi Far, has now taken another filmmaker from us." According to some news sources, Bahareh Lalehi was arrested by the forces of the Islamic Republic and was killed in prison. Meanwhile, the police have declared the cause of death of this young filmmaker as "suicide." In its statement published on Thursday, June 14, the Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran wrote that "the pattern of these killings and their similarity to the serial murders of the 1990s is so great that one cannot dismiss the hand of a government that has previously been stained with the blood of artists as uninvolved in these crimes." The association expressed condolences to Bahareh Lalehi's family and called for the clarification of the "suspicious" and "hidden" aspects of the case of this independent filmmaker's alleged suicide, holding the security and judicial institutions of the Islamic Republic responsible for the loss of this artist's life. The Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran concluded by stating that "Bahareh responded to the call of the uprising of women, life, freedom, and it is our duty to strive to clarify the reasons for her silence." In this regard, Mahshid Zamani, a film critic and member of the Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran, told Voice of America: "The support of many members of the Iranian film community for the uprising of women, life, freedom, has naturally not sat well with the Islamic government and, as always, they have resorted to intimidation following the pattern of serial killings." She added: "The efforts of the security forces to further corner artists, and this time filmmakers, only indicate that the government still does not understand that the path opened by the women, life, freedom revolution for Iranian filmmakers will not be stopped, interrupted, or diverted by these intimidations." According to reports published on social media, "Bahareh Lalehi Hajidellai," a 40-year-old director and screenwriter residing in Tehran, who had previously been arrested during the nationwide protests of 2021, disappeared in the winter of 2023. Reports indicate that this cultural activist was buried without her family's knowledge in Behesht Sakineh cemetery in Alborz province, and her death was subsequently communicated to her relatives. According to what is registered in the Behesht Sakineh system, the date of Bahareh Lalehi's death is recorded as "April 2, 2024," and reports suggest that this date is "two to four weeks after her disappearance." Reactions to the possibility of Bahareh Lalehi being "killed" in custody: "The children of Iranian cinema have been put to sleep." Mohammad Rasoulof, after receiving the special jury prize at Cannes: The people of Iran have been taken hostage by the Islamic Republic. The Independent Filmmakers Association: Rasoulof's verdict showed that the law of the Islamic Republic is merely a tool for stubbornness and revenge against opponents. The Independent Filmmakers Association of Iran: The Islamic Republic is afraid of "freedom of art and expression." Paying tribute to Iranian filmmakers banned from leaving the country to the pioneering women of the protest movement in Iran.