Key Points
- The family of Iranian teenager Nika Shakarami has accused security forces of stealing her body and burying her.
- Her body was found buried a day after what would have been her 17th birthday.
The family of Iranian teenager Nika Shakarami has accused security forces of stealing her body and burying her without their knowledge, according to a report by BBC Persian.
Nika, 16 at the time, was missing for around 10 days after attending one of many protests held across the country following the .
Her aunty, Atash Shahkarami, told the BBC that Nika was last heard telling her friends she was being chased by security forces in Tehran.
Ms Shakarami's aunty posted a photo of her niece on 28 September, appealing for information from the public about her whereabouts. She was last seen a week earlier, after attending a protest in solidarity with Mahsa Amini. Source: Twitter / Atash Shahkarami
After finding her body in a detention centre morgue 10 days later on Sunday, her family transferred her to their hometown, Khorramabad, in the country's west.
But, according to an unnamed source, her body was "stolen" from Khorramabad and buried by security forces in a village 40 minutes away without the family's knowledge.
Upon hearing the news of Nika's death, Atash posted on Twitter the lyrics of a Persian song, which translate to:
"You slept without lullabies and stories
Take it easy and sleep without pain and sadness
You won't have winter nightmares anymore
You don't pick flowers of regret in your sleep
There is no place for the slaps of the wind
The sun doesn't burn your face anymore
You won't wake up feeling sad anymore
Either go with hesitation or stay."
She ended the thread with: "Nika was found; but not alive!"
According to unverified reports, Atash and Nika's uncle have been arrested since posting about her death on social media.
A video circulating widely on Twitter shows Nika's mother protesting with an image of her daughter. She chants: "Today was your birthday my love. Today I have to congratulate your martyrdom."
Iranian football coach Ali Karimi shared an image of Nika on Twitter, honouring the 17-year-old whose "lifeless and damaged body" was handed over to her family.
Nika Shakarami is the latest Iranian woman whose name is being heavily posted on social media by supporters and activists who are pushing to dismantle the current ultra-conservative government headed by supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
Protests have continued across Iran in defiance of the authorities for 19 days, since the death of Mahsa Amini, who triggered a wave of demonstrations demanding freedom for women in the country.
Oslo-based human rights group Iran Human Rights said at least 92 people have been killed so far in the protests, while Amnesty International has confirmed 53 deaths.
