Fashion student, 23, ‘shot dead in back of the head’ in Iran protests

A 23-year-old student was shot dead at close range after joining mass anti-government protests in Iran, according to a human rights group, as the regime continues its crackdown on demonstrations.

According to the Iran Human Rights group, Rubina Aminian, 23, was killed on 8 January after leaving Shariati College in Tehran, the nation’s capital, and joining protest gatherings.

Sources close to her family told Norway-based Iran Human Rights that Ms Aminian, who was a student of textile and fashion design, was shot from behind at close range, with the bullet striking her head.

The group said Ms Aminian’s family travelled to Tehran to identify their daughter among “the bodies of hundreds of young people”, said Iran Human Rights. When they returned to their home in Kermanshah to bury their daughter, they found it surrounded by intelligence forces, forcing them to bury her by the side of a road.

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Ms Aminian was described as “a young woman full of joy for life and passionate about fashion and clothing design, whose dreams were buried by the violent repression of the Islamic Republic”, by Iran Human Rights.

Her death comes as the clerical regime tightened its grip on the anti-government protests, which started two weeks ago over the collapse of the economy and have since spread across the country.

Ms Aminian is believed to be one of more than 500 people who have died so far, according to US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).

Authorities in the country have warned that those taking part in the demonstrations face the death penalty for causing damage to property. The military also accused foreign “enemies” of fuelling the unrest and urged civilians to stay vigilant against so-called “enemy plots”.

Donald Trump has warned the regime that the United States will “hit them hard” if protesters were killed, and is understood to be weighing up options for action within days.

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But as international pressure on Iran mounts, Tehran said on Sunday it was ready to launch preemptive strikes against Israeli and US bases in the region if it was attacked.

“In the event of an attack on Iran, both the occupied territory and all American military centres, bases and ships in the region will be our legitimate targets,” parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said.