Iran Families Asked to Pay to Recover Protesters’ Bodies
Families of protesters killed during the recent unrest in Iran have accused authorities of demanding large payments before releasing the bodies of their relatives for burial, according to accounts shared with the BBC. Several sources told BBC Persian that bodies of those killed are being kept in hospital mortuaries, with security forces refusing to hand them over unless families pay substantial sums of money. These allegations come amid nationwide protests that have left thousands dead in just over two weeks. According to figures from the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), at least 2,435 people have been killed since the demonstrations began, alongside 13 children and 153 members of the security forces or government. The group also reports that more than 18,000 people have been arrested. In the northern city of Rasht, one family said they were asked to […]
