Iran protests: Bereaved families prevented from mourning their loved ones move their memorials online
When protests broke out across Iran in September, 26-year-old Mohammed Hassan Torkaman’s message was one of defiance.
“Personally, if I see even one symbolic protest in Babol, I will support it,” he wrote on Twitter.
The nature-loving student was shot dead by security forces during a demonstration just two days later – protests had broken out over the death of a young woman in police custody who was arrested for wearing her hijab “incorrectly”.
Months on, his family say they are still being harassed by the authorities in an attempt to silence them about what happened. It is an experience that human rights experts say is common for those whose loved ones died as a result of state violence in Iran.
For some families like Mohammad Hassan’s, however, remaining silent is not an option. And social media is providing them with a way to memorialise and seek justice for the dead.
Mohammad Hassan Torkaman’s story
Mohammad Hassan was a typical 26-year-old. He loved the outdoors, and could often be found exploring the forest with his friends. He was fascinated by space too, covering his home with posters of stars and far-flung galaxies.
His fluffy white Persian cat, Pashmak, was his pride and joy.
Mohammed Hassan and his cat, Pashmak. Pic: Twitter
His brother says he was a calm, kind person who had great ambitions.
“He had big ideas and wanted to make an impact in the future,” his brother said.
Mohammed Hassan had moved to Babol five years ago to study at university. So on 21 September, his family in Shahin Shahr, Isfahan, didn’t know he had gone out to protest.
It was only when they received a worried phone call from one of his friends that they realised something awful had happened.
“I was in a terrible state of shock, so I remember everything like a nightmare,” his brother said.
The friend told them that he had been calling Mohammad Hassan after he failed to turn up to his house as expected. An unknown voice eventually picked up and said that Mohammad Hassan had been shot.
His father, a veteran and former prisoner of war during the conflict between Iran and Iraq, was so shocked by the news that he suffered a stroke and was taken into intensive care.
His brother says that when he went to see Mohammad Hassan’s body in the morgue, he saw a bullet wound in his head.
For three days, the authorities refused to release the body and only did so on the condition that the family would remain quiet about where he had been shot and held the funeral under strict security.
But even then, their ordeal was far from over.
“The events for the third and the seventh days were held under watchful eyes of the agents,” his brother said.
At the 40th day ceremony, the situation escalated.
“They were attacked by the security forces, plain clothes militia using stun grenades, tear gas, rubber bullets, paintballs and batons. Many were arrested and wounded,” his brother said.
It’s now been months since Mohammad Hassan’s death and the memorial gatherings that followed. But relatives say the authorities are still harassing them.
“We are more or less threatened, we are monitored and controlled, some days they follow us, some nights they are stationed near our home,” his brother said.
Digital memorialisation
Azadeh Pourzand, a human rights researcher at SOAS University of London, explains that Iranian authorities have a history of treating families of those killed by the state in this way as they fear the impact the killing could have.
“It’s ironic that the regime is so strong with its state violence as a repressive regime but is scared of the dead bodies it creates,” she told Sky News.
“It’s not new to see the burial ceremonies for victims of state violence being disrupted in this way. It’s used as a tool to further harass and silence families,” she said.
Azadeh says that for many years, this meant that the only cases that would garner attention were those in which the victim was already publicly known or of a certain societal status. It was therefore largely left to human rights organisations like the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center to document the stories of all of the others who died at the hands of the state.
Since 2002, the centre has run the Omid Memorial project which is a digital archive of all of those who have been killed by the state and acts as an online memorial.
“The project’s mission is to ensure that all victims of the state’s violation of the right to life are memorialised, that society acknowledges the harm done to them and their loved ones, to help start their healing process in the absence of justice,” said Roya Boroumand, who runs the centre.
The advent of social media, however, has meant that individuals are now empowered to do this themselves in ways that they were previously unable to. It means that social media pages dedicated to the memory of those who have been killed in Iran are increasingly common online.
Many of these accounts are run by bereaved family members. Three months after Mohammad Hassan’s death, two of his relatives set up Twitter pages that post on a daily basis, almost exclusively about Mohammad Hassan. They now have a combined following of over 27,000.
This digital image of Mohammed Hassan has been shared on pages dedicated to his memory and across social media
Among the posts are pictures of Mohammad Hassan as a child, as well as his gravestone and memorial shrine. Many include anecdotes about Mohammad Hassan and calls for justice.
The hashtag of Mohammad Hassan’s full name in Farsi, which features in each of the posts, has been tweeted over 143,000 times according to data collected by social listening platform TalkWalker.
One of the posts shared in memory of Mohammed Hassan, which was originally written in Farsi describes how the cemetery he is buried in was blocked off by security agents
“It is my duty and my family’s duty to be the voice of my brother’s unjustly shed blood. My father was the one who stood in front of Iraqi soldiers and defended his country. We learned our courage from him,” Mohammad Hassan’s brother said.
Other accounts dedicated to memorialising all of those who have died have also sprung up.
One page was initially created to pay tribute to the 1,500 protesters killed in 2019. The account now creates and shares memorials for those who have died during the recent protests and for those who have been executed. It has 27,000 followers on Instagram and a further 7,000 on Twitter.
“The government of Iran wants these things not to be mentioned at all, not to be heard at all. The government media denies this at all,” the page’s operator told Sky News.
“I am the voice of their grieving families,” they said.
“What we are seeing here is grassroots archiving and memorialising,” said Azadeh Pourzand.
She explains that these memorials are also about achieving justice for those who have died.
“The ultimate goal is: we are not going to forget and we are not going to forgive. We’re not going to let our loved one’s blood go to waste. We are going to keep it alive, we are going to remember and we are going to seek justice,” she told Sky News.
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
Emergency responders are searching for bodies inside stranded cars and buildings following deadly flash floods in Spain that have killed at least 158 people.
Scenes of destruction have been left in the wake of the powerful floodwaters which hit the east of the country late on Tuesday and early Wednesday, marking Spain‘s worst natural disaster this century.
Cars have been piled high on top of each other, homes and businesses have been swept away, trees have been uprooted, and roads and bridges have been left unrecognisable.
Spain flooding latest: Looting breaks out as flood deaths rise
Damaged cars along a road on the outskirts of Valencia. Pic: Reuters
People work to clear a mud-covered street in Paiporta. Pic: Reuters
At least 92 people have died in the worst-hit region of Valencia, while deaths were also reported in Castilla La Mancha and southern Andalusia.
An unknown number of people remain missing.
“Unfortunately, there are dead people inside some vehicles,” Spain’s transport minister Oscar Puente said.
In the Valencian district of La Torre, nine dead bodies were discovered inside a garage – with a local police officer among the victims.
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Man pulled from deadly floods
Luis Sanchez, a welder, said he saved several people from floodwaters rushing through the V-31 motorway south of Valencia city.
“I saw bodies floating past. I called out but nothing,” Mr Sanchez said.
“The firefighters took the elderly first, when they could get in. I am from nearby so I tried to help and rescue people. People were crying all over, they were trapped.”
Read more on this story:
Lives have been ripped apart in Spain
Floods hit ‘like a tsunami’ – eyewitness
Satellite images from NASA show how severe flooding has impacted Valencia and its surrounding towns.
The images, captured on 30 October, show large areas to the south of the city covered in floodwater.
The Turia river, which runs through the city, can be seen at a much higher level.
The Pobles del Sud, a large lake nearby, overflowed. Much of the area surrounding the lake was covered in floodwater.
The worst of the destruction was concentrated in Paiporta, a municipality next to Valencia city, where 62 people have been reported dead.
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Spanish town ‘worst-hit’ by floods
Mayor Maribel Albalat told national broadcaster RTVE: “We found a lot of elderly people in the town centre. There were also a lot of people who came to get their cars out of their garages… it was a real trap.”
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Thursday morning that Valencia had been declared a disaster zone and that the priority was to find victims and missing people.
He also urged those affected to stay at home as more torrential rain was forecast.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
“The most important thing is that I know Spanish people are aware that this phenomenon has not finished,” he said.
Sky News’ Europe correspondent Adam Parsons, reporting from Valencia, said the devastation suffered in the region is “enormous”.
“What we’re witnessing now are the locals here who are waking up and seeing what’s happened to their town and what has happened is something almost apocalyptic,” he said.
A nearby shop was left “absolutely wrecked” and looked like a “bomb has gone off in there”, he added.
Three days of mourning has been declared in Spain, beginning on Thursday.
Spain’s Mediterranean coast is used to autumn storms that can cause flooding, but this was the most powerful flash flood event in recent memory, and scientists have linked its strength to climate change.
In the Spanish town of Algemesi, people are angry.
The suburb of Raval was one of the worst hit by flash flooding but residents feel abandoned.
At least 158 people have been killed in the disaster in eastern Spain – with the worst of the flooding concentrated around the Valencia region.
Spain floods latest: Looting breaks out as flood deaths surpass 150
“When the alert came the water was already two metres high,” Carolina shouts from her balcony. “There were no police, firefighters or the mayor. No one came to rescue us.”
The distress is echoed street after street.
Carmen puts her head in her hands and weeps.
“They have lost everything,” she says, pointing at her neighbours’ houses.
Read more:
‘People were crying, they were trapped’
Utterly random damage in town where 40 died
Every home is in ruins and their owners are heartbroken.
Dolores shows us inside her house. She says the flood was up to the ceiling but because no help came, they have had to hammer holes in the walls to clear the water.
“I feel awful. I’m terrified and very afraid. My husband is sick – we need more help,” she says.
Dolores says her family had to hammer holes into the walls of their home
The level of destruction is immense.
On the street, we meet Noel with his children. The youngest toddler barefoot in the mud.
Yesterday, Noel and his wife had nothing to eat. He feels helpless.
Noel says he doesn’t have access to water, light or food
“Right now, there are people who are trapped. The mud is up to their waists, so they can’t open their doors,” he says.
“I live on a high floor so I didn’t have problems with the flooding in my home, but I don’t have water, light, or food.”
There’s a growing feeling of desperation in this suburb.
At one point, someone shouts “food!” and people rush to grab what they can from a nearby shop.
It’s not clear if they have been let in by the owner or are looting.
The devastation is so great and at a time when people are at their most in need, they feel frustrated and alone.
In a nearby shelter we meet people from Algemesi who have been made homeless by the flood.
Carol says she has never felt so hopeless.
Carol says there is ‘nothing left’
“There was a tree trunk that came into the front of my house. There are no walls, no ceiling. I don’t have anything. There’s nothing left,” she explains, beginning to cry.
For many, the initial trauma of this natural disaster has been compounded in the aftermath by a feeling of loss and loneliness.
World
Ukraine war: Thousands of North Korean troops near Ukraine border will enter battle ‘within days’, says Blinken
Thousands of North Korean soldiers are now positioned near Ukraine’s border and likely to enter combat in the coming days, the US says.
Russian troops have been training them in artillery, drones and “basic infantry operations, including trench clearing”, said US secretary of state Antony Blinken.
He said it strongly indicated they would be used on the front line and would therefore become legitimate targets for Ukraine.
Some 10,000 North Korean troops are in Russia, including up to 8,000 in the Kursk border region, Mr Blinken said.
The troops are wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian gear, according to US defence secretary Lloyd Austin.
Read more: Where have North Korea troops been seen in Russia?
“We’ve not yet seen these troops deploy into combat against Ukrainian forces, but we would expect that to happen in the
coming days,” Mr Blinken said on Thursday.
America’s top diplomat said the recruitment of troops from North Korea to Russia’s “meat grinder” was a “clear sign of weakness”.
A South Korean and US delegation met in Washington DC. Pic: Reuters
Mr Blinken made the assessment after he and Mr Austin met their South Korean counterparts in Washington DC.
Foreign minister Cho Tae-yul called for the immediate withdrawal of North Korean soldiers from Russia and condemned it “in the strongest possible terms”.
They also all agreed China should do more to rein in North Korea, Mr Blinken said, adding that he’d had a “robust conversation” with Beijing this week.
The Kursk region borders eastern Ukraine
Mr Austin also announced that – with the US election just days away – America would soon be announcing new security assistance for Ukraine.
The deployment of troops to Russia is down to the close relationship between President Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
The leaders last met in June when Mr Putin travelled to North Korea for the first time in 24 years.
President Putin and Kim Jong Un went for a drive together in Pyongyang in June. Pic: Reuters
A mutual defence pact was agreed during their summit, meaning the countries will help each other if they are attacked.
The US says North Korea has also given munitions to Russia as it continues its grinding effort to take more territory in Ukraine’s east.
The White House published images earlier this month which it said showed 1,000 containers of equipment being sent to Russia by rail.
There are concerns about what military aid Russia will now provide in exchange.
North Korea test-fired an an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time in almost a year on Thursday and there is speculation Russia may have provided technological help.
South Korean TV showed pictures of Thursday’s launch by the North. Pic: AP
In a statement, the US, Japan and South Korea condemned the launch as a “flagrant violation” of UN resolutions.
“We strongly urge (North Korea) to immediately cease its series of provocative and destabilising actions that threaten peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and beyond,” they said.
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