Distraught family say they were forced to pay for the bullet that killed their son

Hooman, 37, was among the thousands of Iranians killed in a brutal crackdown on protests against the regime

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An Iranian family was forced to pay for the bullet that killed their son during a brutal crackdown on protesters, his loved ones say.

Security forces for the Islamic Republic killed 37-year-old Hooman last month after he joined demonstrations in Lahijan in the north of Iran, according to his family.

“Hooman took to the streets without a weapon,” Nasrin, his aunt, speaking from Germany due to safety concerns, told Sky News.

“He didn't even have a small rock in his pockets to defend himself, but he was shot with a military bullet.”

The bazaar where demonstrations took place was reportedly set on fire and as protesters ran from the blaze, security forces began shooting, a friend told Nasrin.

Iranian state TV aired the aftermath of the scene describing it as “the terrorist incident of the Rasht bazaar fire”.

An hour before he was shot, a friend said Hooman had said on social media that if he didn’t return it meant that he had died so others could be free. His aunt says he was married just three years ago.

Pictures on his social media from around five years ago appear to show him in the uniform for a civil or military authority, while another shows him in the driving seat of a police car while wearing uniform.

Hooman’s family was forced to visit hospitals to look for their son, and found piles of bodies stacked on top of each other. Other families had gathered to discover if their loved ones were among the dead.

“They saw so many people crying, all screaming, suffering in every way possible,” Nasrin continued.

“There were several containers. They said the body was in the containers. When they opened the doors, there were several corpses stacked on top of each other. They had to look for their son.”

In line with other reports from families, Nasrin says that her relatives were told to bury Hooman immediately and sign a document preventing them from speaking about the incident.

“They had to pay for the bullet that killed their son,” she said.

Human rights groups and other organisations have previously reported that families have been asked to pay for the costs associated with the deaths of protesters with authorities demanding thousands of dollars in exchange for their release.

Reports suggest that the costs cover of ammunition and mortuary fees. Poorer families are unable to pay the prices and are threatened with collective and anonymous burials in return.

“They shoot the young people and then they demand money for the bullet. Are these the people in power or are they murderers?” she said.

Asked who she thought was responsible, Nasrin said: “The Iranian government, the Mullahs. They're all murderers, they all have the blood of the Iranian people on their hands.”

Nasrin also has no faith in President Donald Trump, who is currently working on a nuclear deal with the country and had previously told Iranians that “help is on its way”. She believes change needs to happen from within.

“From outside, they just want war, they want to destroy our country. We don't want that,” she said.

At least 6,000 people have reportedly been killed in Iran, and although numbers are hard to verify aid organisations warning the number could be far higher. Iran’s government released the names of 3,000 people killed including both civilians and members of the country’s security forces.

On the 47th anniversary of the Islamic Republic’s birth, the country’s president Masoud Pezeshkian issued an apology for the extent of the crackdown on the protests.

“We are ashamed before the people, and we are obligated to assist all those who were harmed in these incidents,” he said. “We are not seeking confrontation with the people.”

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