Behieh Namjoo, the mother of Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari, who was executed for protesting in 2020, was seen in a video shared online on Saturday banging on the doors of an Iranian detention facility demanding the release of her daughter Elham Afkari.
“You killed one of my sons and are still keeping my other son in solitary confinement! Is it still not enough for you?!”
Behieh Namjoo, mother of arrested and executed Iranian protesters
"You killed one of my sons and are still keeping my other son in solitary confinement! Is it still not enough for you?!" shouted Namjoo while banging on the doors of the No. 100 detention center of the Iranian Intelligence Ministry. "I will remove this door!"
Elham was recently arrested on claims that she worked with the Iran International news agency, charges which her family vehemently denies. Her husband and three-year-old daughter were also reportedly detained alongside her, although they were later released on Thursday. Navid's brother, Vahid, has been held in solitary confinement for over two years.
The detainee's mother and her family have been sitting outside the detention center since Elham was transferred there, demanding to receive information about her condition.
Elham has been on hunger strike since she was arrested, her brother, Saeed, stated on his Twitter account.
On Saturday, Elham's brother, Hamid, was arrested in front of the detention center, reportedly while seeking information about his sister, according to Radio Farda.
Elham's family urges international media to be careful sharing regime reports
In a statement shared with the 1500tasvir Twitter account, which has been sharing information about the protests from Iran, the family said that Elham was arrested in Shiraz, not while trying to escape the country, and that while she has been "critical of the regime," she has never worked for or had any relationship with any media.
After follow-ups, Reuters also included the Afkari family’s response to Fars’s allegations in its piece. However, this piece includes only a portion of their response. Here is the full text of the Afkaris’ response: https://t.co/BIiZFBmoSN pic.twitter.com/wYOqxIaXK9
— +۱۵۰۰تصویر (@1500tasvir) November 11, 2022
"In spite of the fact that everyone already knows Fars and the regime's 'news agencies' are nothing but terrorist organizations that do nothing but spreading (sic.) lies and propaganda, we thought it necessary to underscore this for the Islamic Republic: you will get nowhere with these lies, you are collapsing, say hi to your end," said the Afkari family.
The family additionally asked international news agencies to be careful when quoting regime-controlled news agencies, such as Fars, stating that "they are in fact fabricating stories to frame and incriminate innocent Iranians with each and every one of their words."
"Repeating these words by independent world media is not spreading news, it just helps the Islamic Republic more easily take away people's lives and livelihoods," added the family.
Protests continue across Iran
Protests continued across Iran on Friday and Saturday, as many Iranians prepared for further large protests in the coming days to mark the anniversary of the 2019 "Bloody November" protests, when as many as 1,500 Iranian protesters were killed in a brutal government crackdown.
فراخوان ملی در امتداد آبان‌خونین!«جوانان سراسر کشور» از تمام اقشار و صنوف کشور تقاضا می‌کند به مناسبت سالگرد آبان خون در تاریخ‌های ۲۴، ۲۵ و ۲۶ آبان ماه، ضمن اعتصابات سراسری از ساعت ۱۱ در تمام خیابان‌ها و میادین اصلی به خیابان آمده و قیام کنند.پیروزی در خیابان است.#مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/FUXPgQ1zBy
— جوانان سراسر کشور (@iran_javanan) November 12, 2022
Posters shared online showed calls for Iranians to gather in the streets for protests on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and for businesses across the country to strike on these days.
زاهدان ۲۰ آبان#مهسا_امینی pic.twitter.com/mVOYBOBZp2
— +۱۵۰۰تصویر (@1500tasvir) November 11, 2022
Protests were reported in Zahedan, Tehran, Arak, Shiraz and Sanandaj, among other cities.
At the Tehran University of Science and Culture, students chanted "if you execute [protesters] we will rise up," according to video shared by Iran International.
ویدیوهای رسیده به ایران اینترنشنال نشان می‌دهد روز شنبه ۲۱ آبان‌ماه دانشجویان دانشگاه علم و فرهنگ تهران، در تجمع اعتراضی خود شعار «این آخرین پیامه، اعدام کنین قیامه» سر می‌دهند pic.twitter.com/eTxZGac5Lg
— ايران اينترنشنال (@IranIntl) November 12, 2022
At least 326 people have been killed in the protests sparked by the killing of Mahsa Amini by Iranian morality police in mid-October, according to the Iran Human Rights organization.