Iranian security forces have opened fire on crowds near Tehran marking the 40th day of mourning for a woman shot dead while protesting, witnesses say.
Authorities shut a cemetery and blocked roads to stop people reaching the grave of Hadis Najafi, who has become a symbol of the unrest engulfing Iran.
Videos showed thousands walking along a highway to reach the cemetery in Karaj and shouting anti-government slogans.
Security personnel responded by firing shot-guns, witnesses told the BBC.
“They [security forces] were firing birdshot at people,” said one person living in an area where there were clashes. “They stabbed a protester with a machete after he fell to the ground, already hit with birdshot.”
Another witness told the BBC that a bullet fired by security forces had hit the window of their neighbour’s home. “People are chanting ‘death to the dictator’ on the main street. They have fired tear gas. It has spread into the neighbourhood. My throat is burning.”
They added: “I tried to record a video from the window, but they are firing shots… I am scared. We have closed the curtains.”
Hadis Najafi, a 22-year-old TikToker, recorded a video on her phone as she walked to a demonstration in Karaj, just west of Tehran, on 21 September.
“I hope in a few years when I look back, I will be happy that everything has changed for the better,” she says, as night falls around her, in the video obtained by BBC Persian.
Her family said that she was shot dead by security forces almost an hour later. Officials allegedly asked her father to say that she died of a heart attack.
Last week, Najafi’s sister posted a message on Instagram inviting “all our friends who stayed and supported us over the past couple of weeks” to a “chehelom” ceremony on Thursday marking the end of the 40-day mourning period, which is a culturally significant event for Iranians.
However, the BBC understands that she was later told to remove the post by the Iranian intelligence ministry. The family was also warned not to hold any public mourning ceremony or invite anyone to participate in it.
Activists reported on Thursday morning that roads to the Behesht Sakineh cemetery had been closed by security forces in anticipation of protests.
However, thousands of people apparently managed to make their way round the roadblocks and converge on the site. Videos posted on social media showed large crowds walking along a highway and other roads. BBC
