Somayeh Sari Khani, a Mother of the Victims, Arrested in Tehran

According to human rights sources, Somayeh Sari Khani Dashti, the mother of Erfan Sari Khani Dashti, one of the victims of the protests in 2022, was arrested. The Dabban Legal Consultation and Education Center reported that government agents arrested Somayeh Sari Khani in Tehran on Wednesday, October 5. No information has been released regarding the reason for her arrest or her place of detention. Erfan Sari Khani Dashti, a 22-year-old protester residing in Tehran, went missing on October 26 last year, and his lifeless body was found on October 29 near Jajroud, with a broken nose and face. In recent weeks, several members of the families of victims have been arrested, including Mashallah Karami, the father of executed protester Mohammad Mehdi Karami, the parents of Hananeh Kiya, a protester killed in Mazandaran, and the father and two brothers of Javad Heydari, a protester killed in Qazvin, who remain imprisoned. Government agents are trying to prevent the commemoration ceremonies for the victims of the protests through pressure and arrests of the families. In some cases, government agencies have blocked access to the graves of the victims to prevent attendees from participating in the memorials. For instance, the Hengaw Human Rights Organization previously reported that armed forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps blocked the road leading to the 'Bagh Razvan' cemetery in Islamabad Gharb on September 30, the anniversary of the deaths of Saeed Mohammadi, Amir Fooladi, and Iman Mohammadi, protesters from the region. Mahtab Ghorbani, a writer and human rights activist, previously stated in an interview with VOA that the arrests of the families of victims are a demonstration of the last resort by the Islamic Republic.