Iran protests: Nine-year-old boy shot dead by security forces – source

Two boys were shot dead by security forces during anti-government protests in south-western Iran on Wednesday, sources close to their families say.

State media reported that seven people were killed by gunmen on motorbikes in a “terrorist attack” in Izeh.

But the sources told BBC Persian that security personnel fired the live rounds that killed Kian Pirfalak, nine, and Sepehr Maghsoudi, 14.

At least 13 people were said to have been killed elsewhere on Wednesday.

There has been a wave of street demonstrations and strikes in major cities since Tuesday in response to calls to commemorate those killed in the bloody crackdown on the November 2019 protests over fuel price rises.

The current protests against clerical rule were sparked by the death in custody three months ago of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who was detained by morality police for allegedly breaking the strict rules on hijabs.

At least 362 protesters, including 56 children, have been killed and 16,000 arrested as security forces have struggled to suppress what Iran’s leaders have portrayed as “riots”, according to the Iranian Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA). It has also reported the deaths of 46 security personnel.

Meet 10yr old Kian Pirfalak. He wanted to become an inventer. Here he is explaining the propeller boat he made for a festival. IRI killed him with war bullets while he was going home with his father on 16 Nov in Izdeh, Khuzestan. #مهسا_امینی #کیان_پیرفلک pic.twitter.com/MyIUub12FR

— mahsa alimardani 🌒 مثلا (@maasalan) November 17, 2022