April 5th, 2011, RoozOnline - In an interview with Rooz Online’s Fereshteh Ghazi, Behnoud Ramezani’s father announced that he will pursue a complaint he filed with the judiciary until the individuals responsible for his son’s murder have been identified and put on trial.
Behnoud Ramezani’s father informed Rooz Online that on the night of the Iranian Fire Festival, his son was fatally beaten by motorcycle-riding security agents, resulting in fractures in his hand, foot, and neck, and the rupture of one his testes.
Behnood Ramezani, 19 years old and a second term student at Noushiravani University of Babol, died on the March 17, 2011, a day that corresponded with the “Tuesdays of Protest” and a tense security atmosphere in the city of Tehran; the event took place in the Narmak area of Tehran.
The head of Security for the city of Tehran, Sardar Radan, announced in an interview that three individuals had lost their lives on the night of the Festival of Fire [Chaharshanbe Souri] as a result of explosions of hand grenades. Government media sources reiterated Radan’s claims, asserting that Behnoud Ramezani had lost his life as a result of a hand grenade detonating in his pant pocket; claims that were rejected by eye witnesses, Behnoud Ramezani’s family, and the coroner.
The death certificate issued by the coroner had described the cause of death for Behnoud Ramezani as “injuries sustained as a result of severe blows to the body”.
An eye witness describes how motorcycle-riding basij’s attacked 22nd Square in Narmak, telling Rooz Online: “They were Basij’s, the same kind that ride around the streets on motorcycles chanting slogans of fear. Two of the motorcycles were carrying fire extinguishers. We were minding our own business. Nobody was chanting or protesting. We were busy celebrating our national tradition, Iranian Fire Festival.
As time approached for us to say our goodbye’s and head back home, the basij’s suddenly attacked us and began beating everyone with batons and electric tasers. They were beating people up badly. People began shouting and complaining. Some people gathered to help those being beaten and the basij’s retreated. The basij’s were so frightened of the crowd and the fact that those present might begin creating problems, they left behind one of their motorcycles. I suddenly heard people shouting.
They kept saying “They’ve killed someone! They’ve killed someone!”. I got up and saw that Behnoud was on the ground. He was not moving. The ambulance arrived and they took him to the hospital. We followed the ambulance but we were told that he had already passed away. I was in a state of shock, unable to believe what had happened… Later they published that a hand grenade had detonated, destroying his body into pieces. These are all LIES.
He was beaten to death. No hand grenades detonated. He was severely beaten by batons, leaving his entire body injured. A few of the individuals fled the scene in a car. Our friends however, wrote down their license plate number.”
