Hengaw: Iran kills protester Amirhesam Khodayarifard as state media promote “Basij” claim

Hengaw — Thursday, January 1, 2026

Amid ongoing public protests in the city of Kuhdasht, Lorestan province, Amirhesam Khodayarifard, a local resident, was killed after being shot directly with live ammunition by Iranian forces. In the aftermath, state institutions and government-affiliated media outlets promoted a narrative portraying him as a “Basij member.”

According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Khodayarifard, 22, was shot on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, while among protesters in Kuhdasht. He was transferred to medical facilities in Khorramabad, where he died several hours later due to the severity of his injuries.

Informed sources and eyewitnesses told Hengaw that Khodayarifard was participating in public demonstrations when he was shot at close range in the head with a handgun by one of the Iranian forces.

Shortly after the incident, state media and outlets affiliated with state  institutions published images of Khodayarifard and claimed that he was a “Basij member” who had allegedly been killed as a result of “violent actions by protesters.” However, video footage from the moment he was shot, along with eyewitness testimony provided to Hengaw, directly contradicts these claims and shows that he was among the protesters and was fatally wounded by direct gunfire from Iranian forces.

Sources in Kuhdasht reported that since the previous day, the city’s governor, the Friday prayer leader, and government institutions, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, have repeatedly visited the Khodayarifard family’s home to pressure them into publicly declaring their son a Basij member. According to these sources, the return of Khodayarifard’s body and permission to hold burial ceremonies have been made conditional on a televised admission by the family affirming this claim.

Hengaw has also learned that as of Thursday, Kuhdasht has been placed under heavy security measures. Government institutions have issued warnings to activists and widely followed Telegram channels and Instagram pages, instructing them not to publish information regarding the circumstances of Khodayarifard’s killing.

In previous years, Iranian authorities have repeatedly adopted similar practices during protest movements, combining the use of force with efforts to portray protesters killed by government forces as affiliates of state institutions.

Human rights observers view this approach as an attempt to obscure responsibility for the killing of protesters and evade accountability.

Protests and strikes across Iran began on Sunday, December 28, 2025, following a sharp and unprecedented surge in foreign currency prices, including the U.S. dollar surpassing 1,450,000 rials, alongside a continued decline in the value of the national currency. These protests have been met with force by Iranian authorities.