Kurdish families and activists in Iran defied a heavy security force presence on Friday to visit the graves of protesters killed by Iranian forces over the past year.
The visits took place on the first day of Eid al-Fitr, a traditional day for visiting the graves of deceased family members.
One of the graves visited was that of Jîna (Mahsa) Amini, whose death last September sparked the nationwide protests over Iran’s strict Islamic dress code for women.
Amini died in police custody on 16 September 2022 after she was arrested by Iran’s ‘morality police’ for violating hijab rules and immediately became a symbol for women and girls in the country who continue to defy the dress code.
On Friday in Iran’s Kurdistan region (Rojhilat), mourners gathered at Amini’s grave. Security forces surrounded the Saqqez cemetery, but there were no reports of altercations or arrests.
Similar gatherings took place in cemeteries in Bukan and Mahabad, according to the Kurdish news agency Hengaw.
In Bukan female activists chanted the slogan “Jin, Jiyan, Azadî” (Woman, Life, Freedom) and planted 22 trees for the victims of the uprising.