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Iran paves over mass grave of 1979 revolution victims, turning it into a parking lot
Thousands of graves from Iran's 1979 Revolution mass executions at Behesht-e Zahra are being paved over for urban development despite regulations requiring family consent.
- Iran is converting Lot 41 at Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in Tehran, the burial site of thousands executed after the 1979 revolution, into a parking lot.
- This action follows a history of mass executions, graves desecration, and ongoing efforts to erase evidence linked to state violence spanning the 1980s through recent protests.
- Lot 41 contains between 5,000 and 7,000 graves belonging to individuals labeled as religious dissidents by Iran, including communists, militants, and monarchists, many of whose burial sites have been vandalized and had surrounding trees intentionally destroyed.
- A United Nations special rapporteur stated in 2024 that destruction aims to conceal evidence and avoid legal accountability, while researcher Shahin Nasiri noted survivors still search for their relatives' graves amid state surveillance.
- The conversion, acknowledged by Tehran officials last week, ties to broader patterns of erasing historical memory and raises questions about compliance with Iranian regulations requiring family consent for cemetery repurposing.
37 Articles
37 Articles
Iran Paves over Mass Grave of 1979 Revolution Victims, Turning It into a Parking Lot
A desert-like patch of sand and scrawny trees in the largest cemetery in Iran's capital has been the final resting place for decades for some of the thousands killed in the mass executions that followed Iran's 1979 Iranian Revolution. Now, Lot 41 at the sprawling Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in Tehran is becoming a parking lot, with their remains likely beneath asphalt. Images from Planet Labs PBC show the parking lot being laid over the site, where…
Associated Press News
Iran paves over mass grave of 1979 revolution victims, turning it into a parking lot
Iran is paving over a lot in Tehran's largest cemetery believed to be the final resting place for some of the thousands killed in the mass executions that followed the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Asphalt is being poured over mass graves in Tehran. Iran's decision has drawn fierce criticism, with researchers and human rights activists protesting the demolition of the graves.
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