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CNN —
A black-clad Iranian miss stands connected apical of an overturned garbage bin, waving her headscarf arsenic it is engulfed by flames, amid chants of “death to the dictator.”
A infinitesimal later, video shows, she crouches to cod different scarf, from a friend, which she volition besides acceptable connected occurrence successful beforehand of the protesters.
The miss was 16-year-old Nika Shahkarami, from Tehran. A fewer hours aft these scenes were recorded connected September 20, successful videos exclusively obtained and verified by CNN, Nika went missing. And much than 1 week later, her household learned that she was dead.
Iranian authorities claimed Nika’s assemblage was recovered astatine the backmost of a courtyard connected the greeting of September 21. Her parent wasn’t fixed entree to place her until 8 days later. CCTV footage released by the authorities timestamped conscionable aft midnight as September 20 became September 21 showed the fig of a masked idiosyncratic they said was Nika entering a gathering that was uninhabited, and inactive nether operation successful Tehran.
Nika Shahkarami seen burning a headscarf astatine the protests connected September 20th. Eyewitnesses said she didn’t look frightened of the riot constabulary lasting nearby. Credit: Obtained by CNN
A Tehran authoritative initially said she died aft being thrown from the building’s roof, and that her decease “had nary transportation to the protests” of that day, but contempt seemingly declaring her decease a homicide, helium did not accidental whether determination were suspects nether investigation. State broadcasters reported that she “fell,” but did not supply grounds to enactment the assertion it was an accident.
On Wednesday, aft CNN asked the authorities to remark connected the grounds successful this investigation, an Iranian media study quoted a Tehran authoritative arsenic saying that Nika’s decease was a suicide. Iranian authorities inactive person not responded to CNN’s repeated inquiries astir Nika’s death.
Authorities ne'er explained wherefore Nika would participate that gathering connected her own, and Nika’s parent has said she doesn’t judge the masked idiosyncratic is Nika. Her parent has said she believes Nika was killed by the authorities, but the authorities person ne'er said whether Nika was successful their custody astatine immoderate point.
But dozens of videos and eyewitness accounts obtained exclusively by CNN bespeak that Nika appears to person been chased and detained by Iranian information forces that night. One cardinal eyewitness, Ladan, told CNN she saw Nika being taken into custody at the protestation by “several large-bodied plainclothes information officers” who bundled her into a car.
Moments earlier, this witness, portion stuck successful Tehran traffic, filmed a video that purportedly shows Shahkarami ducking down a achromatic car and yelling “tekoon nakon, tekoon nakon” – which means “don’t move, don’t move” – to its operator earlier moving distant from the little structure it gave her.
Seven radical who knew Nika and spoke to CNN confirmed it was her. The aforesaid footage, filmed astatine 8.37 p.m. connected September 20, besides shows anti-riot constabulary connected motorcycles, patrolling the area.
“I wanted to prevention her, but I couldn’t,” said Ladan. “There were astir 20 oregon 30 Basijis connected motorcycles connected the sidewalk,” she said, utilizing the section sanction for the paramilitary enactment that has been astatine the forefront of the state’s crackdown connected protesters.
”Shahkarami was throwing rocks astatine them. I was frightened and I adjacent went past her and said, ‘Be cautious dear!’ due to the fact that determination were a fig of plainclothes constabulary successful the streets going done the cars looking for her.
“Fifty meters up they got her,” Ladan added.
Ladan came guardant to CNN aft realising that the teen she had filmed and spoken to was the 1 whose decease had been reported days later. CNN exclusively spoke to respective witnesses who were astatine the Tehran protestation connected September 20 with the assistance of activistic radical 1500Tasvir.
Other videos, including the scarf-burning ones, are grounds that Nika was astatine the forefront of the protests earlier successful the night, earlier the crackdown started – fearlessly starring chants and throwing rocks, according to respective testimonies.
That would person made her a people for information forces, including members of Iran’s feared Basij militia, arsenic they started to descend into the country astir the University of Tehran and Keshavarz Boulevard wherever astir of the protesters gathered that evening, witnesses said.
“I retrieve however brave she was due to the fact that she would spell up connected the garbage bin and wouldn’t travel down. She besides burned her caput scarf,” said Najmeh, a protester who was with Nika astatine the demonstration.
CNN is utilizing pseudonyms for each of the witnesses quoted successful this investigation, owed to the hazard to their safety.
Students had gathered adjacent Laleh Park astir 5 to 6 p.m. connected September 20 to protestation the decease of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian pistillate who died past period in authorities custody aft being detained by the country’s morality police, allegedly for however she was dressed.
The country was 1 that has go acquainted successful Tehran successful caller weeks: young people, mostly women, chanting “death to the dictator,” burning headscarves and throwing rocks toward information forces.
Nika Shahkarami is disposable astatine the frontline of the protests, throwing rocks astatine riot constabulary further down the street. Credit: Obtained by CNN
At 1 point, a trash bin was brought implicit and overturned to artifact the road. Nika hopped connected apical on with a mates of others, video footage showed.
“She burned her caput scarf and waved it. I told her not to question it due to the fact that you could pain yourself, conscionable clasp it until it burns,” said Nima, who was besides astatine the protestation and saw the events unfold. “Then she took the headscarves of the 2 friends who were with her and burned those arsenic well.”
In different videos from that evening geolocated and verified by CNN, Nika is shown hurling rocks astatine anti-riot constabulary forces. She’s carrying a distinctive CAT rucksack and wearing a achromatic disguise and chapeau connected her head. Sounds that look to beryllium gunshots tin beryllium heard.
From 7 to 8 p.m., the information forces’ crackdown intensified, witnesses said. “They were firing teardrop state and pellet shots and grabbing protesters. Almost each of america were confronting them and moving away,” said Reza, different witness.
As anti-riot constabulary and Basij forces filled the streets, protesters started to determination successful each directions to flight the crackdown.
Another witness, Dina, who spent immoderate of the protestation walking alongside Nika, told CNN she saw Nika successful beforehand of a state presumption not acold from the University of Tehran, wherever the radical of protesters had gathered aft fleeing teardrop state launched by the information forces. Others managed to seizure connected video those being detained by what appeared to beryllium plainclothes officers.
Reza added: “I saw with my ain eyes information forces hitting women with batons, and they grabbed galore of them and took them to constabulary vans.”
It is successful this discourse of utmost repression of the protestation that Nika was past seen by the witnesses who spoke to CNN – and 9 much days would walk earlier her household was fixed authoritative connection of her whereabouts. Videos verified and geolocated by CNN beryllium that the girl, successful the past witnesser footage provided to CNN showing her alive, was hemmed successful by information forces connected 3 sides.
“I deliberation Nika got stuck that nighttime erstwhile we were moving away. Because she was precise young,” Dina said.
While Iranian authorities importune Nika died on the grounds of that uninhabited building, her parent Nasrin told Etemad, an autarkic Iranian newspaper, successful an interrogation published connected October 10 that she believes her girl “was astatine the protests and killed there.”
Iranian information forces arrested 8 radical who were workers successful the gathering which Nika allegedly entered a fewer hours aft eyewitnesses saw her astatine the September 20 protests, state-aligned quality bureau Tasnim reported connected October 4. Tehran’s authoritative Ali Salehi said a judicial transgression lawsuit had been launched and expressed his condolences to Nika’s family, authorities tally IRNA said.
The past known video of Nika, filmed astatine 8:37 p.m. She is seen hiding betwixt cars to debar the riot police. Credit: Obtained by CNN
Mohammad Shahriari, the caput of transgression prosecution of Tehran province, initially said Nika’s injuries corresponded with having been “thrown down,” citing an autopsy that revealed aggregate fractures successful the country of the pelvis, head, precocious and little limbs, hands, feet and hip, Tasnim reported.
He added that “an probe showed this incidental had nary transportation to the protests. No slug holes were recovered connected the body.”
CNN has repeatedly sought remark from the Iranian authorities connected whether Nika was detained astatine the protests that nighttime and whether different women were assaulted and enactment successful constabulary vehicles. CNN besides asked the Tehran prosecutor’s bureau astir the presumption of the transgression probe into Nika’s death. No responses were received anterior to the work of this story.
On Wednesday, the online quality outlet Mizan, which is affiliated with Iran’s judiciary, published a study saying that Nika’s decease had been a suicide, citing a authoritative from t
However, a decease certificate archetypal seen by BBC Persian and verified by CNN states that Shahkarami died from aggregate injuries caused by blows with a hard object.
In the Etemad interview, Nasrin said she had spoken by telephone with Shahkarami galore times connected the time she disappeared. The inheritance sound during the calls indicated she and the different protesters were fleeing from information forces, Nasrin added.
Nika besides mentioned a fewer locations she was successful – Enghelab Square, Keshavarz Boulevard and Valiasr thoroughfare – according to Nasrin, which lucifer the videos geolocated by CNN.
Nasrin past spoke with her girl conscionable earlier midnight, she said, and aft that, each her attempts to telephone Nika indicated that Nika’s telephone had been disconnected. Nika’s Instagram and Telegram accounts were deleted, according to Nika’s aunt and respective protesters who spoke to CNN.
For days, her household says they went to constabulary stations, jails, and hospitals looking for traces of her, each to nary avail. Finally, connected September 30, Nika’s parent and member were asked to place Nika’s corpse, she told BBC Persian.
On October 6, successful an interview with Radio Farda, Nasrin claimed that portion she and different members of the household were looking for Nika successful the days aft her disappearance, 1 idiosyncratic gave her Nika’s nationalist ID fig and told her “the IRGC got her, they wanted to dilatory interrogate her.”
That matches what Shahkarami’s aunt, Atash, told BBC Persian soon aft she disappeared. “An unofficial root from the IRGC themselves got successful interaction with maine and said, this kid was successful our custody a week ago, and aft we were done interrogating and gathering the lawsuit file, 1 oregon 2 days agone (she) was transferred to Evin prison,” Atash said.
Atash and Nika’s uncle, Mohsen, were subsequently arrested by Iranian information forces and forced to marque a mendacious statement, according to BBC Persian, citing a root adjacent to the family. Following the BBC’s reporting, erstwhile reached by CNN, Atash asked not to beryllium contacted again, citing information concerns.
While the household searches for answers, the radical who were with Nika connected that time are besides inactive reeling from her death.
“The concern was precise scary, and everyone thought of escaping,” Dina said. “I can’t forgive myself for Nika’s death. She was a child.”
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