The Wish of Kian Pirfalak's Mother on the Longest Night: May This Be the Last Winter of Our Bitter Days

The families of Kian Pirfalak and Yalda Aghafazli, two victims of the nationwide protests in Iran in 2022, commemorated their memories on the eve of the longest night of the year, expressing hope for the rising sun and the end of the 'Yalda of the homeland.' Kian Pirfalak's mother, a 9-year-old boy who was killed by direct gunfire from government forces during the protests in Izeh, said at her son's grave: 'May this be the last winter of our bitter days.' Mah Monir Molaei Rad, Kian's mother, shared a video of the Yalda ceremony at her young son's grave on Thursday, December 20, stating: 'In the name of the God of the rainbow, we are the Yalda sitters of our freedom night; I wish that the Yalda of the homeland had a dawn.' Addressing her deceased son with hope for Iran's freedom, she added: 'Kian! This is our third Yalda that passes by your grave; may this be the last winter of our bitter days.' Molaei Rad recalled several traditions of Yalda night, the longest night of the year that Iranians celebrate in hope of the sun being born tomorrow, and added: 'We did not read, we did not dance, we did not recite Hafiz, nor did we tell the tales of Scheherazade for our children. We only looked at your absence and honored this ancient tradition.' Kian Pirfalak's mother wrote to her deceased son: 'But this is the last time I stand beside you and choke up.' Meanwhile, the family of Yalda Aghafazli, on the eve of Yalda and the anniversary of their protest daughter's birth, published images of her life. Yalda Aghafazli, a 19-year-old protester, was arrested during the nationwide protests in Tehran in 2022 and suspiciously lost her life just five days after being released from prison. She had told her friends that her file stated 'the accused did not express remorse.' Concurrently, some social media users have commemorated the victims of the nationwide protests. For instance, political activist Mehdi Hajati wrote on X: 'On Yalda tables, let us place the images of Yalda Aghafazli, the eternal daughter of Iran, who did not express remorse, and vow before her beautiful eyes that we will end this night and be ready to sacrifice for Iran's Yalda.' Journalist Nima Afsharnaderi also wrote: 'I wish the morning after Yalda would dawn. We would see a rainbow, and Kian would smile.' At the same time, the 7 Aban Front, a political opposition group to the Islamic Republic, issued a statement on the eve of Yalda, honoring one of the ancient Iranian rituals that symbolizes the rebirth of Iranian culture by publishing images of the killed protesters.